A Change in the Enemy: Hidden in the Shadows (Book 8)
by SweetHeart114
Summary: (Thanks to Dashergirl for the title) Everything falls into chaos as the ninja realize who they're now up against. Zane's kidnapped, Lloyd's dead, and Kai and Jay are lost. Cole has to do everything he can to keep what left of the team together, but when a rumor starts about Lloyd being alive again, nothing is as it seems. The fight continues in the streets and shadows on Ninjago.
1. Chapter 1- Unleashing Chaos

_**I apologize that I was away longer than I hoped I would be. I just didn't know how I wanted to start this next story. After a lot of thinking, I managed to come up with something that works for it so I hope you enjoy.**_

A month had passed and everything was destroyed. Buildings had been turned into rubble, streets that still existed were cracked, unmaintained and coated in grass and weeds, windows were replaced with wooden boards while doors were boarded from the outside. Everything was quiet, other than the odd guard standing their post on the streets. They were normal people, wearing all black with masks covering their faces and holding a gun in their hands.

In a dark alleyway, one man slid through a small crack in the wall, pulling a mask down. His hand brushed his hood down the reveal his shaggy black hair and chocolate brown eyes. He looked around the room, seeing four others looking up at him.

"Anything?" a feminine voice asked.

"Nothing," he replied, sitting next to one of the people.

"Do you think they'll even be alive when we find them?" another asked.

"Don't think like that Nya," the first said. "Kai and Jay are strong."

"I know, Dash," Nya replied. "I know they can handle themselves, but it's been almost a month since we saw them, so how do we even know if they're alive anymore?"

"We don't," he replied. "But we can't give up. We have to keep fighting."  
"For what?" Dash asked. "Everything is either destroyed or has been taken, Cole."

"The people of Ninjago," Cole replied.

"Anyone who is still alive is either being held captive in a dungeon or prison, or is being forced into slavery," Nya said. "That alone is very few. And from what we know, there hasn't been any signs of a rebellion either."

"Would the others want us to just give up?" Cole asked. "They would want us to keep going and keep trying to free everyone until we physically can't."  
"You say that as if they were gone," Ali's soft voice came in.

Cole went silent, not responding to her. He didn't know how the respond to her. He really had no clue to where the rest of his team was. Lloyd was dead yet supposably alive, Zane was in _his_ hands, Kai and Jay were missing and no one knew anything about the other elemental masters. As far as he knew, he, Dash, Nya and Ali were the only ones left with some freedom. And it wasn't much. They were luck to have a roof over their heads that wasn't provided by _him_. Everyday when he came back from scavenging for food for the ladies, he would be bombarded by questions of why they kept pushing forwards like they did. Everytime, Cole couldn't stop the images of the last day he saw Kai and Jay. The terror on their faces when they were separated from them. Nya's terrified, heartwrenching screams as she lost not only her boyfriend, but her brother. The day they realized everything.

Only moments too late.

* * *

 _*One Month Prior*_

"Alright, we know Zane's in trouble," Cole said.  
"But he said not to come for him," Nya responded.

"He sounded very distressed and upset," Dash added.

Cole and Jay helped the frightened Kai into a chair. He was beginning to overcome his trance, returning to his normal self.

"Are we 100% positive that was the Overlord?" Jay asked. "I mean, it could have easily been anyone else with a raspy voice. Right?"

"That was him, Jay," Ali sighed. "There was no doubt about it."

"We have to do something," Kai spoke. "We can't just sit here and let him do anything he wants to with Zane."

"Well, hold on," Nya said. "Let's look at everything else Zane told us in the message."  
"He said something about them wanting to resurrect someone," Ali said.

"You don't think he could mean Lloyd, do you?" Dash asked.

"Why would the Overlord want to resurrect the one person who was destined to defeat him?" Cole questioned.

"Wait, Lloyd wasn't the only one who defeated the Overlord," Kai said. "Zane did too."  
"Right," Nya sighed. "And if he resurrects Lloyd, he'll have both of them."

"What else do we know?" Cole asked.

"He really made it clear he didn't want us coming for him," Dash said.

"Probably because he was after two of us ninja," Jay's eyes widened.

Everyone looked at each other.

"Well, we can take Ali, Dash and Zack off that list," Cole said. "That leaves Kai, Jay, Nya and myself."  
"And Zane, we don't know if he was one of the targets," Nya commented.

"What if Lloyd was one of the targets?" Kai asked. "Then he would have a reason to resurrect him."  
"Only to kill him again? That wouldn't make sense," Cole shook his head.

"Unless he doesn't want to kill them, but do something else with them," Jay suggested.

"That's a fair point," Cole sighed. "There are just too many options."  
As Cole sighed, an explosion shook the Temple. They all stumbled, terrified.

"What was that!" Cole shouted.

"Is everyone alright?" Ali asked.

"I'm good," Zack called out.

"All good," Dash called.

"I'm fine," Cole said.

"I'm Ok," Kai answered.

"Where's Jay!" Nya shrieked.

The dust from the explosion died down, and revealed a large, gaping hole in the wall. They all turned to where the blue ninja once sat beside Kai, but he was gone. Cole was about to speak when an ear piercing scream cut him off.

"Jay!" Nya screamed.

She ran towards the opening, scrambling out it in search for the blue ninja. Kai shot to his feet, scrambling after her. It took the rest of the team a moment to collect themselves before they were follow the red ninja out the opening. They stopped in the daylight, seeing several darkly coloured dragons soaring above them. One of said dragons held a terrified and clearly now injured blue ninja in its claws.

"Jay!" Nya screamed.

Cole could see Jay struggling to call back, but he reached for them with a hopeless effort.

"Watch out!" Ali screamed.

In seconds, Cole found himself on the ground with Ali on top of him. Another dragon came dangerously close, its claws tearing a rip in Ali's top.

"What are these things!" Kai shouted.

"Creatures of the Dark Island," Dash answered. "They belong to the Overlord."  
"More proof that he's behind this," Cole muttered.

He looked up as Kai ran towards his sister, glancing off to his left every couple seconds. Cole looked to his left and saw why Kai was running towards his sister. A dragon was coming right at her.

"Nya! Watch out!" Cole shouted.

Nya spun around, turning and looking at him. She turned and saw the dragon as Kai jumped at her. Kai pushed her out of the way as the dragon latched its claws into him. Kai scream, either from pain or terror, possibly both, Cole didn't know. All he knew is that he had to get everyone out of there.

"Come on, we're running out of time!" Cole shouted. "We have to get out of here!"  
Cole ran and grabbed Nya, picking her up off the ground and throwing her over his shoulder.

"Nicki, Roy, take Zack and go! Ali, grab Dash and follow me!" Cole ordered.

"I'm stay with Zack!" Dash cried.

"Don't argue with me and just follow me! Come on!" Cole snapped.

Dash looked down at Zack, worried. Ali grabbed her before she could say anything to him and they ran. Dash glanced over her shoulder, seeing the little boy she called her family with Nicki and Roy, disappearing in the distance. Go a completely different way than her.

Cole dealt with Nya screams and cries for her brother and boyfriend. He looked back at the Temple as he circled around in the sky. He stopped in the air, hovering as Ali caught up to him with Dash. By then, Nya was sobbing into his back as the dragons took the red and blue ninjas away.

"Where to?" Ali asked.

"Anywhere but there," Cole pointed back to the Temple. "It's not safe anymore."

Ali nodded as Cole turned his dragon and lead them away from their old home.


	2. Chapter 2- Say What Now?

Kai sat in a cell, his hands chained beside him. Next to him, he could hear Jay's soft whimpers as the blue ninja slept, having constant nightmares. He should have been sleeping to, but he couldn't. It wasn't that he just didn't want to, the constant nightmares that haunted him kept him awake and, at one point, alert. Now, his exhaustion kept trying to put him back to sleep, but the fear of another nightmare kept him awake. They were just too much to handle.

Kai was snapped from his thoughts when the sound of footsteps echoed around him. He turned and kicked Jay lightly. Jay woke up, panting and sweating as he looked around. Of course, Jay had been having on of those nightmares that Kai was afraid of. He just wanted to sleep, so he put up with them.

"Someone's coming," Kai whispered.

Jay looked up as the door opened, revealing Zane. Only it wasn't their Zane. He had been hacked and was being control by the Overlord, with no signs of his old self to the other two captured ninja. It only caused everything to hurt more for them.

"Master wants a word with you," Zane pointed at Kai.

Kai didn't speak, letting Zane undo his chains and pull his to his feet. He brought Kai towards the door, and Kai cast a glance at Jay. He was slowly drifting off again, and Kai smiled.

"Move it," Zane shoved Kai out the door.

Kai stumbled for a second then caught his balance. Zane lead him down the dungeon hallway to an elevator. It was the only way in and out, and you needed to have an ID Card to access it. Kai stood in the corner as Zane scanned his card and punched the button for the 100th level. Then the elevator shot up. If it a first time, Kai would have been terrified, but he had been up and down it multiple times. He didn't know how many times, or how long he and Jay had been trapped there. Everything was fused together with no sense of time.

Kai stepped forwards as the door opened and Zane forced him out of the elevator. Before him was his captor; the Overlord. Just one part of him was different, one that Kai would never be able to adjust to.

"Welcome back, Kai," he smiled. "How have you been?"

"You should know," Kai spat.

"Now, now, let's not let that temper get the best of us, shall we," the Overlord grinned.

Kai felt a shock in his arm and winced. Zane pulled a taser back, keeping it ready for when it was needed again. Kai knew if he did anything to step out of place, it would come for him.

"So, do you know why I asked for your presence?" the Overlord taunted.

"Because you want to kill me?" Kai guessed, looking for something logical and wanting his suffering to end.

"Oh no, no, no," the Overlord laughed. "I need you alive for what I have planned."

Kai watched the Overlord walked over to a small glass chamber. With a nod of his head, Zane took Kai by the arm and lead him over to where the Overlord stood. This was the closest Kai had ever been to him when he wasn't being tortured.

"Do you know what this is?" the Overlord asked.

"Yeah," Kai frowned.

"Do you know what I plan on doing with it?" he asked.

"No," Kai replied.

In a split second, the chamber door was thrown open as Kai was shoved inside it. He spun around as the door closed and locked him inside. His hands hit the glass door, his amber eyes showing how terrified he was.

"Don't worry, child," the Overlord chidded. "I don't intend to hurt you yet. Only use you for my needs."

"What do you want from me?" Kai cried. "Why are you doing this?"  
"It's not what I want with you, but with the elements," the Overlord told him. "I want the Golden Power, and I cannot obtain that on my own. I need you and your friends elements."  
"You're going to take my power?" Kai asked.

"Not quite," the Overlord smiled. "I need all four elements of Fire, Lightning, Earth and Ice combined to create the Golden Powers, as well as a way to extract it from another being, a mortal being."  
Kai's stomach twisted when he realized what the Overlord was saying, what he was planning.

"You're going to take their powers, give them to me to create the golden powers, then steal the golden powers from me," Kai said.

"My, you are smart under that temper," the Overlord grinned.

"You can't do this," Kai pleaded.  
"What's stopping me?" the Overlord taunted.

"You don't have Cole," Kai told him. "He's still out there with the rest of the team."  
"And your sister, correct?" the Overlord smirked.

"What did you do to her?" Kai snapped.  
"Nothing, nothing," the Overlord replied, "yet."

Kai raged, hitting the glass with his hands. His hands turned into flames as he smashed them against the chamber.

"Calm down and I'll spare her," the Overlord grinned.

Kai sighed, falling back in the chamber. He sat on the floor, pulling his knees up to his chest. The Overlord turned to Zane, who waited for orders.

"Bring me the blue ninja," he instructed.

Kai watched Zane walk away, and into the elevator. He turned and watched the Overlord as he paced around the chamber.

"Why me?" Kai asked. "Why not Zane? How do you know I won't try to get away from here before you can take the powers?"  
"You'll be under lock and key when you aren't around me," the Overlord replied. "Not only that, but there will be someone watching you every moment of the day. You won't get anywhere."

Kai gulped.

"Secondly, I know how powerful you are with the element of fire," the Overlord continued. "I know you will be able to easily hold all four elements and the golden power."

Kai looked down, trying to think of a way to escape. He didn't noticed Jay and Zane enter the room until his name was called. He looked up, seeing Jay looking at him with his hands on the glass. Kai pulled himself onto his knees, looking at his teammate. Kai could see the worry in his friend's eyes, while Jay could see the fear in Kai's.

"This might be the last time you two see each other for a while, so make it last," the Overlord told them.

Kai glanced over Jay's shoulder, seeing the Overlord and Zane discussing something.

"Are you alright? What's going on?" Jay asked.

"He wants the golden power," Kai explained. "He says that if he combines all four of our elements, including Cole's, then he'd be able to get them."

"Why are you in there then?" Jay asked.

"He wants to give me the powers to extract them for himself," Kai told Jay.

Jay looked over at the Overlord, then back at Kai.

"Oh no," Jay muttered. "We have to get you out of here."

"How?" Kai asked. "He's got nindroids everywhere, and we don't know where anyone else is."

"Alright, let's get this show started," the Overlord cheered.

Kai gulped. Zane walked over to Jay, grabbing his arms and leading him to a set of seats against a wall. There were wires attached to the chairs, leading to the chamber that trapped Kai. Kai could only watch as he held his breath in fear.

Jay didn't struggle, knowing what would come if he did. Zane forced him back into the chair, and strapped him down. Jay looked over at Kai and mouthed the words "Just hang in there" to him. Kai nodded, watching everything happening around him.

"You too, Zane," the Overlord instructed.

Zane nodded, sitting in the chair next to Jay. The Overlord strapped Zane down, and walked over to a control panel. Jay whimpered softly, and so did Kai. Neither of them knew how to stop this, nor would have been able to in their situation. The Overlord flipped a switch and the transfer started. Kai could feel the power building in him, and it was overwhelming for him. He hadn't had this much power in him ever before in his life. He fell back against the chamber and moaned softly. Not from pain, but from the exhaustion he was already facing and the new energy suddenly appearing.

Once it was over, Jay was the moaning one, any energy that he had left was gone. He could hardly stand on his own as Zane pulled him to his feet.

"Take him back to his cell, then return here to guard Kai," the Overlord instructed Zane. "Also make sure there is a patrol sent out to search for any signs of the others. I want them all, especially Cole."

"Yes, Master," Zane nodded.

Kai watched Zane and Jay leave while he was still trapped in the chamber. The Overlord was walking around him, waiting for Zane to return. But now, Kai didn't see the Overlord, but his host, the person he was controlling. It only made Kai upset as he curled into a ball in the chamber, keeping his eyes open to avoid sleep.

"Someone save me," he muttered softly to himself. "Please."


	3. Chapter 3- Romantic Escapees

Cole slipped back into the alleyway, thinking that he was going to be alone for a while with Ali and Nya still out on a supplies run. He walked silently towards the crack to slide inside when he heard a voice inside. Not a bad one, a friendly one. And it was singing.

" _Remember me. Though I have to say goodbye, remember me. Don't let it make you cry. For even if I'm far away, I hold you in my heart. I sing a secret song to you each night we are apart."_

Cole slipped into the shelter as silently as he could, enchanted by the voice. He looked around, and his eyes landed on Dash in the corner, singing softly.

" _Remember me. Though I have to travel far, remember me. Each time you hear a sad guitar. Know that I'm with you the only way that I can be. Until you're in my arms again, remember me."_

"I didn't know you could sing," Cole smiled.

Dash looked up, startled. She blushed as she looked away.

"The song just reminds me of Zack," she muttered.

"I'm sure wherever he is, he's safe," Cole smiled.

Dash nodded softly. Cole sighed and moved beside her. He sat next to her, looking down at the ground.

"You know, I'm worried about my friends too," Cole said softly.

"But they can defend themselves, can't they?" Dash asked.

"Not always," Cole replied. "Sometimes things don't work out for us. We also don't know if they are together or where they are if they are or aren't. With Zack, we at least know he's with people we can trust."

Dash nodded, looking away. Cole saw that he wasn't getting through to her. He sighed, looking up at the ceiling. (Better Days by Hedley. Altered to not include swear words because reasons)

" _I've been down, I've been down, burning up like fever_ ," Cole sang softly. " _Better days, better days are not so far away_."

He looked up at Dash, seeing her turned to look at him. She was listening.

" _I don't wanna waste a minute, but if I gotta waste a minute, I'd spend the time tryna' get my vibe on track_ ," Cole sang. " _And if I'm on a star, don't wanna spin it. My life's up in flames, and I lit it. I wonder if I'll ever get that good thing back._ "

Dash nodded, listening to him sing.

" _And I'll keep praying I make it, like someone worth saving_ ," Cole continued. " _I still got some fight left inside me_."

" _I've been down, I've been down, burning up like fever_ ," Cole sang. " _Better days, better days are not so far away. I've been lost, I've been found. Now I believe in better days. Better days, are not so far away. Better days, better days, are not so far away. Better days, better days, are not so far away_."

Dash smiled as Cole turned to her. Then she started singing.

" _Guess I didn't break it, but I bent it. I know I didn't say it, but I meant it. I shoulda' had a little more heart and soul,_ " she sang, smiling at him. " _Oh, oh, trash the rear view mirror, our future looks a little bit clearer. I'm turning every second into solid gold._ "

" _And I'll keep praying I make it, like someone worth saving_ ," she continued. " _I still got some fight left inside me_."

Then Cole joined her as they sang together.

" _I've been down, I've been down, burning up like fever. Better days, better days are not so far away. I've been lost, I've been found. Now I believe in better days. Better days, are not so far away. Better days, better days, are not so far away. Better days, better days, are not so far away_."

Cole smiled at her and pulled Dash to her feet.

" _And I'll keep praying I make it, like someone worth saving,_ " Cole sang softly.

" _I still got some fight left inside me_ ," Dash grinned.

" _I've been down, I've been down, burning up like fever. Better days, better days are not so far away_ ," Cole sang.

" _I've been lost, I've been found. Now I believe in better days. Better days, are not so far away_ ," Dash sang in response.

" _Better days, better days, are not so far away. Better days, better days, are not so far away_ ," they sang together, then hugged each other tightly.

"You know you'll see him again, I promise," Cole smiled at her.

"Thanks, Cole," Dash smiled.

"I'm here for you anytime you need me to be," Cole smiled.

Dash blushed, rolling up onto her toes and planting a kiss on Cole's cheek. He blushed deeply.

"What's going on in here?"

Cole and Dash turned as Nya and Ali slipped into the shelter.

"Um…" Cole blushed deepened as his eyes went wide. "I can explain."

"Lovebirds," Nya rolled her eyes.

"Any news?" Dash asked, looking between them.

"Nothing new," Ali sighed. "Maybe we are all that's left."

"Not saying your wrong, but I wouldn't say that," Nya replied.

"Why's that?" Cole asked.

"Well, I passed the OverTower," Nya started.

"Ok, we all agreed that we were going nowhere near the Overlord's base, Nya," Cole frowned.

"I know, I know, but I saw something," Nya insisted.

"What?" Ali asked, leaning against the wall behind her as she sat on the dusty floor.

"Kai and Jay," Nya said.

"You saw them?" Dash's eyes lightened up.

"Were they in the Tower?" Cole asked.

"Yeah," Nya sighed. "I don't know why, but Kai was trapped in a chamber of some sorts and was talking to Jay. I don't know what was happening because I didn't hang around to risk being spotted."  
"Good thing too," Cole sighed. "The patrols would be coming out soon."

"Well, we know Kai and Jay are both still alive at least," Ali sighed. "What about Zane?"  
"I don't know," Nya sighed. "He might have been there, might not have been. I couldn't see nor did I really look for him."

"Well, we know something about their location at least, and that their alive," Cole sighed. "But what does the Overlord want with them."

"I'm sure we'll find out sooner or later," Ali told him. "For now, we rest while the droids patrol the city, then we'll go check this out."  
Cole nodded, losing himself in his thoughts. The group was silent for several minutes, everyone in their own thoughts. They were only interrupted when a gunshot echoed around them. Dash yelped, jumping and clinging to Cole. Cole quickly covered her mouth as they sat still hoping it wasn't at them. They thought they were safe when there was no response.

"We know you're in there!" a voice shouted. "Come out and surrender and no one will be hurt!"

Cole looked at Ali and Nya as they exchanged terrified glances.

"Come out here, ninja!" another voice shouted. "Let's go."

"What do we do?" Cole whispered.

He felt Dash's grip tighten around him.

"This is my fault," Nya shook her head. "I'll go out and go with them, and you guys run."

"Nya, we can't leave you," Ali said.

"I don't think we have a choice," Cole said.

Nya slowly stood up and walked towards the crack. She slipped through it as the others made for it. They slipped out and started climbing the building. When Ali reached the top and turned to pull Dash up, they heard a bullet fly past them. Cole glanced down, realizing they had been noticed. He saw Nya was chained and wasn't going to be able to escape them.

"Make sure the Earth Ninja isn't injured!" someone shouted. "Boss wants him alive and unharmed."

Ali and Dash pulled Cole onto the roof.

"Why are they after you?" Ali asked him.

"Don't know, nor do I want to," Cole replied. "Come on, we have to move."

"What about Nya?" Dash asked.  
"There isn't time!" Cole shouted.

Cole turned and ran with Dash and Ali hot on his heels. They just had to get away and they would try to make sense of everything once they were safe.


	4. Chapter 4- So Close and So Far

Kai was silent. He had gotten used to the silence, seeing that Jay had almost always slept. Now, he couldn't even talk to the blue ninja when he was awake. He was just trapped in the chamber, alone. The power flowing through him only made his stomach twist. He curled into a ball in the bottom of the chamber, watching the Overlord walk around the room. After several long minutes, Zane finally returned from putting Jay back in his cell.

"What are we going to do with him, Master?" Zane asked the Overlord.

He pondered over it for a moment.

"Grab him and bring him to the holding Chambers," he instructed.

Zane nodded and walked towards the trapped red ninja. Kai watched Zane open the chamber door and pulled him out by the arm. Kai was shaky on his feet at first, but Zane forced him forwards. He looked up as he was forced into the elevator with both Zane and the Overlord behind him. He pushed himself up into the corner, looking between the two others.

"Master, patrol squadron 2 has reported that they're on their way back to HQ with a prisoner," Zane spoke.

"Who?" he asked.

"The water ninja," Zane replied. "The other three escaped."

"How interesting," the Overlord grinned, looking back at Kai.

Kai gulped, avoiding eye contact.

"Tell them to bring her to me," the Overlord instructed. "I want her to see her big brother one last time."

As he said that, the door opened revealing what looked like beds with a glass cover over top of them. Kai gulped when Zane took one hand and the Overlord took the other. They dragged him out of the elevator and into the room, towards on of the beds. Zane released him and opened the curved glass cover from the bed. He turned as the Overlord forced Kai next to Zane and the bed.

"Lie down, Kai," Zane said.

Kai looked behind him to see the Overlord blocking his path. He didn't have any choice in this. He reluctantly climbed onto the bed. He sat for a moment, looking up at Zane. Zane pressing his hands onto Kai's shoulders and forced him to lie down. Kai felt a strap over his arms and chest, and two over his legs.

"Now, stay put until your little sister comes," the Overlord smiled.

Kai watched the Overlord turn towards the door as it opened. Zane picked up an oxygen mask and placed it on Kai's face. He pulled a white blanket over Kai up to his shoulders. Kai watched in fear as Zane closed the cover, lining the masks tube with a notch in the glass before locking it shut.

"Kai!"

Kai's eyes turned to see his sister running towards him. She stopped as her hands rested on the glass dome over him.

"What are they doing to you?" Nya asked, clearly worried. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," Kai told her.

Kai watched Zane walk away from them, but stayed close incase Nya tried to break him out.

"Why are you in there?" Nya asked him.

"I have their powers, Nya," Kai told her. "Jay and Zane powers. He's trying to recreate the golden power in me."

"So he only needs Cole," Nya sighed.

"He isn't here, is he?" Kai asked.

"No, he's safe," Nya replied. "Look, it's only you, me and Zane in here. We can break you out and get as far from here as we can."

"That's not Zane," Kai told her. "The Overlord is controlling him."

Nya frowned and looked at the nindroid. He frowned, getting a message from the system.

"You stay put, I'll be back in a moment," Zane instructed.

Zane turned and walked into the elevator.

"How convenient," Nya smiled once Zane was gone.

She pulled a card she swiped from a droid and opened the door. As she did so, the Overlord walked back into the room.

"What is going on!" he snapped.

Nya spun around, slipping the card into her pocket. The Overlord glared at her, storming up to her. He grabbed her arm and pulled her away from Kai.

"Trying to break him out, are we?" he smirked. "Let's not have that here."

"No, Nya," Kai cried.

"I promised your brother I wouldn't hurt you, and he would cooperate in return," the Overlord told her. "I guess your time with him is over. Let's go see little Jay."

The Overlord closed the dome over Kai and locked it, trapping him inside again. Nay looked at him with her eyes showing worry and concern.

"Don't worry, he'll be fine," the Overlord told her. "Let go."

Nya was pushed forwards and away from Kai. He watched them disappear from his view as his heart sank. He fidgeted under the blanket and straps that held him down. He tried to find a comfortable position, but was unable to no matter how hard he tried. He sighed, letting his head fall against the pillow underneath him.

"So close to freedom, and yet so far," he muttered. He stared at the glass dome above his head, trying to keep himself awake.

* * *

Jay's eyes slowly opened as he looked around. He was moving, he release that. No, someone was carrying him. He looked up and Zane he was on Zane's shoulder. He squirmed, knowing he was being taken somewhere and it wouldn't be to his freedom. It would be worse.

"Stop moving before I knock you out again," Zane told Jay.

Jay stopped, hearing the serious tone in Zane's voice. He felt his hands tied together at his wrists and to his side at his elbows so he couldn't move his arms, and his legs tied together at his ankles and thighs. He sighed, looking back at where he came from. It was quiet for a while until Zane pulled Jay off his shoulder and laid him on a metal table.

"Don't move," Zane ordered him.

Jay froze, remaining still on the table. Zane nodded and turned, walking over to a desk nearby. Jay slowly sat up and pulled his legs up to his chest. He watched Zane shuffle through a bunch of papers, then looked around the room.

"Ah, you did bring him here," a voice boomed.

Jay jumped, turning to see the Overlord in the doorway. Jay curled up tighter, terrified. The Overlord walked over to Zane and spoke to him softly. Zane turned and glanced at Jay.

"Yeah, I can," he told the Overlord.

"Then do it," the Overlord said.

Zane nodded. He turned and walked towards a counter, pulling a couple items out of a drawer. Jay watched him until he felt a hand on his arm. He looked up at the Overlord, seeing him holding Jay's arm. Jay sunk down, scared for a moment that something bad was about to happen.

"Lie down," he instructed.

Jay reluctantly followed his orders and lied back on the table. He tried to keep his breathing even, but he was terrified. The Overlord strapped him to the table, one over his chest, two over his arms with one on each, two on each leg and one going over his forehead. Jay followed the Overlord's movements with his eyes, unable to move his head. His eyes then jumped to Zane when he came into his view.

"You can't stop me," the Overlord muttered. "You are just as helpless as he is."  
Jay frowned, confused. He noticed Zane glance over at the Overlord too, seeing a confused look plastered on the nindroids face.

"Just shut up," the Overlord snapped.

"Master, are you alright?" Zane asked.  
"Was that out loud?" he asked.

"Yes," Zane nodded.

"Ignore that, then," he shrugged it off. "Let's just get this started."

Zane shrugged it away. Jay felt something dig into his left arm and flinched.

"That's not the worst of it," Zane told him, noticing the flinch. "The anesthesia is in. It should take effect momentarily."  
"Anesthesia?" Jay questioned.

"Don't worry, it shouldn't take long," the Overlord told him. "Or, at least, you won't be here for long."

Jay could feel the drug taking effect as he struggled to stay awake. Of course, he couldn't fight it and slowly drifted off to sleep. But not before he felt a searing pain in his leg. What was going to happen to him now? Would he wake up from this? He didn't know, and was afraid to find out.


	5. Chapter 5- Everything has a Price

Nya fidgetted and squirmed in her chains, hoping to find a weak point in them. When she was unable to, she started looking around for something to break them off with.

"I have to get to Kai," she muttered. "He needs my help."

Nya froze, hearing voices outside.

"The master of Lightning?"

"Zane?" Nya muttered to herself.

She listened to the voice.

"Yes, I can see what you are implying."

There was a pause.  
"Yes, of course. He's already weakened and exhausted so it shouldn't be too much of a hassle."  
"What is he talking about?" Nya questioned to herself.  
"Of course, I'll get him and bring him up to you."  
Nya frowned, hearing the metal keys jingling near her. A door opened near her, and then a faint metal clinking.

"Are you sure you don't have everything with you?"

Nya listened, hearing a door close followed by the echo of footsteps outside her door.

"The parts should be there- Alright, that's good."

"Parts?" Nya questioned.

"Alright, I'll have him there in a couple minutes. Make sure everything is accounted for. We don't want to be halfway done and be missing something."

Nya listened as the footsteps walked away. As they did, she saw something slip under the door to her feet. She kicked it next to her hand to find it was a paperclip.

"Stop moving before I knock you out again," Zane threatened.

"Poor Jay," Nya sighed.

She listened as the footsteps disappeared, signaling that Zane was gone with Jay.

"I hope he'll be Ok," Nya muttered. "But I have to find Kai. He's more important at the moment."

Nya took the paperclip, unwound it and started fiddling with her chains. Eventually, she had unlocked them all and was free from the chains.

"Now for the door," Nya grinned.

As she walked up to the door, it swung open.

"What is with all the racket in here?" a droid asked.

Nya acted on instinct, swung a foot out and knocked the droid down. In seconds, she was on top of it, pulling open the main panel and ripping out a handful of wires. The droid sparked for a moment as Nya climbed off it and watched it's eyes go dull.

"That was close," she muttered.

She looked up at the open door, hoping there wasn't another droid there. Luckily, there wasn't any in sight. She pulled the deactivated droid away from the door, propping it up against a wall before slipping out the door. She closed it behind her and turning. She did one last glance around the hallway before dashing for the elevator.

"Come on," she muttered to herself.

The door opened and she ran in. She scanned the stolen card.  
"Crap, what level was Kai on," she muttered to herself.

She made a quick decision and pressed 54. She yelped as the elevator shot upwards, not used to the speed it travelled at. She waited anxiously for the elevator to open, hoping it was the right floor and there wasn't anyone waiting for her. As the elevator door opened, she let out a sigh of relief, seeing the correct floor cleared of any droids to stop her. She stepped out of the elevator, her heart skipping a beat as she remembered that Jay might be in trouble too. She realized it had surprisingly been over an hour since Zane took him. She winced, hoping he was Ok as she made her way to Kai.

She looked into the chamber, seeing Kai in a peaceful sleep in the chamber. His eyes were closed as he breathed softly into the oxygen mask over his mouth. She could see her brother's chest faintly rising and falling under the thin blanket over his body. She had no idea if he was strapped down underneath of it. She guessed he was since he was asleep on his back, and he normally slept on his stomach.

"Let's do this quick," she muttered to herself.

She swiped the card and unlocked the chamber. She pulled it open and ripped the blanket off of her brother's limp body. She found three straps holding him down. She went straight for the one over his chest, unbuckling it and the shaking her brother.

"Kai, wake up," she cried to him. "Please, you need to wake up."  
Nya watched her brother's foggy eyes slowly blink open, looking at her.

"Nya?" he questioned.

Nya sighed in relief as her brother started coming to his senses. She quickly turned to the straps over his legs and started to unbuckle them.

"What's going on?" Kai asked, looking around with a confused look.

"I'm getting you out of here," she told him. "We need to get you as far away from here as we can."  
"How did you escape?" Kai asked.

Nya finished with the straps and reached up to pull the mask off of Kai's face. She set the mask on the bed as Kai shakily climbed to his feet.

"Zane came and took Jay, and a paperclip happened to slip under the door," Nya told him. "I used that to break off the chains, then I had to knock a droid out and locked him in my cell. Then I came here to get you."

Nya ran to the elevator, calling it. She turned as her brother walked towards her.

"Now we need to find Jay before they can do anything to him," Nya told Kai.

"What happened to getting me out of here?" Kai asked.  
"We can go once I know where Jay is," Nya said.

"Right here."

Nya turned and stumbled backwards. The elevator door was opened, and her stomach twisted. She bumped into her brother, who caught her from falling.  
"What did they do to you?" Kai cried.

"Do you not like the upgrades?" Zane asked, a devilish smirk on his face. "O.V. and I worked hard on him."

"How could you! To your own brother!" Nya snapped.

Jay and Zane stepped out of the elevator, towards the siblings. Nya's eyes darted between the two ninja she once helped. Her eyes stopped on Jay, looking at him with pain in her eyes. His legs were covered in sheets of metal, as well as his right arm. His right shoulder had a metal panel on it, running down his chest and covering his abdomen and back. But what really hurt Nya, was seeing the metal earpiece over his right ear, digging into his skull.

"Nya, what do we do?" Kai asked, snapping his sister from her thoughts.

Nya looked over her shoulder at her brother, then back at the two blocking their only escape. Other than-

"This way," Nya said.

She blasted water at Zane and Jay, knocking them into the elevator door. She grabbed her brother's hand and dragging him towards the window.

"Blast it," Nya urged him.  
"Are you crazy!" Kai cried.

"Just do it!" Nya shouted at Kai.

Nya spun around, forming to water spheres in her hands as Zane and Jay approached the two siblings. Kai looked at his hands, worried something might go wrong with the two extra elemental powers flowing through his veins. He took a deep breath, raising his hands and pointing them at the window.

"Anytime now would be good," Nya muttered to him.

"I know, I know," Kai muttered.

He felt a surge of energy as his fire powers blasted from his hands, shattering the window and sending him tumbling into an unsuspecting Zane and Jay. Kai jumped up, not questioning what had just occurred. His sister meanwhile, started at him with wide eyes.

"I thought we were in a hurry," Kai told her.

Nya snapped out of her daze, and turned to her brother.  
"Let's see what else I can do," Kai grinned.

Nya yelped as her brother pulled pulled her close and ran at the shattered window. Nya looked back as Jay and Zane climbed to their feet.

"Don't let them get away!" Zane shouted.

Jay darted after them, and Nya turned to watch as both her and her brother fly out the window. Nya's eyes widened as she turned and dug her face into her brother's chest. She clung to him, unable to escape him to create her energy dragon. Also, she was too terrified to concentrate enough to focus on her dragon.

In seconds, she went from falling to flying. She looked down, seeing her brother's elemental dragon below them. He looked over his shoulder and grinned at her. Freedom at last!


	6. Chapter 6- Betrayal

_**FYI, this story will have Kai suffering a lot. If you haven't noticed already, he's going to be pushed to his limits and beyond them too. Anyways, enjoy!**_

Cole panted as Dash closed the door behind them. Ali looked around the small cabin they had found, checking for anyone else. When she yelped, Cole and Dash ran to help her.

"Zack!" Dash cheered.

They came to find little Zack on top of Ali, with Nicki and Roy ready to to attack nearby.

"You guys escaped," Nicki grinned, letting her defensive stance fall.

"Barely," Cole sighed.

"We were attacked in the city," Ali sighed. "They took Nya, but they wanted Cole," Dash added.

Nicki and Roy looked at the earth ninja, who grimaced at the mention of him being the target.

"Any idea why?" Roy asked.

"None at all," Cole sighed.

"Well, you are the only elemental ninja left," Dash noted.

Cole nodded, knowing that already. For him, it seemed like the only reason he was being targeted.

"Have you guys been here the whole time?" Ali asked.

"Kind of," Nicki shrugged. "I mean, we found this place abandoned after a couple days. We haven't left since."

"Sounds safe then," Cole sighed.

They all jumped, hearing branches breaking and crashing outside.

"Everyone be ready to attack," Nicki frowned. "Something is out there and it sounds big."

Everyone nodded. Dash took Cole by the hand, causing him to turn and look at her.

"Please, just stay hidden, Ok?" Dash asked him.

Cole sighed and nodded. He ducked into one of the closets. He hoped it wasn't a group of patrol droids that followed them.

Meanwhile, Dash stood with Zack and Nicki, watching the door. It slowly opened and a friendly face appeared. The face couldn't see the others in the room.

"Can you give me light, big bro?" she asked.

She walked further into the room and a fireball lit up the room. Everyone's jaw dropped before the two froze.

"Um, who's there?" Nya asked.

"Nya? Kai?" Ali questioned.

"Ali?" Kai questioned.

In a matter of seconds, multiple lamps lit up the room. Kai and Nya looked around to see everyone else in the room.

"You escaped," Dash grinned.

"But how?" Ali asked. "The Overlord has guards everywhere."

"He does," Nya sighed. "We barely escaped, but it came with a price."

Everyone looked around, exchanging worried glances.

"We've lost Jay and Zane," Nya told them.

"What?" Cole asked.

Nya and Kai turned as Cole emerged from the shadows.

"Cole, you're safe," Kai sighed in relief.

"What happened to Jay and Zane?" Cole asked Kai, walking up to his teammate. "Why is he after me?"

"Jay and Zane have been turned against us," Nya said. "The Overlord controls them now."

Kai placed a hand on his sisters shoulder, knowing how hurt she was when she saw what happened to her brother.

"They might have done it to you too if you didn't get out when you did," Kai told her.

"What about Cole?" Dash spoke up. "Why are they after him?"

Kai looked from Dash to Cole, seeing they were both worried. Kai bit his lip, debating if he wanted to tell them the truth.

"I can tell them if you want," Nya whispered to him.

"No, I should tell them," Kai sighed.

He looked up at Cole, seeing the confused look on his face.

"He wants your powers, Cole," Kai told him.

"Why?" Cole frowned.

"He wants to recreate the golden powers," Kai told him.

"But he needs all four elements combined, and he can't do that," Ali said. "At least, not on his own."  
"That's why Kai was so important to him," Nya said.

"He didn't," Cole's eyes widened.

Kai sighed, nodding slowly.

"He's given Zane and Jay's elements to me," Kai said softly.

"That means Cole's element is the last one before the Golden Powers are created in Kai," Dash gasped.

Everyone looked at Kai as he fidgeted uncomfortably. Cole took Kai by the hand and lead him deeper into the Cabin, away from everyone else. Nya looked around, seeing everyone in a slight shock.

"I don't know what he was put through, but it wasn't good," Nya sighed. "He's suffered a lot from the Overlord, and possibly Zane too. And the fact that-"

Nya choked on her words, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks.

"That what, Nya?" Dash asked.

"That-" Nya stuttered.

Nya took a deep breath, and managed to tell them.

"That it never seemed like the Overlord to him, to Jay, to me," Nya muttered.

"What do you mean?" Ali asked.

"You don't know who the Overlord is controlling, do you," Nya sighed.

"The Overlord needs a host, a mortal body to be able to survive in our realm," Dash told the others. "The Golden Powers are the only thing that can give him a human body, which is why he's so desperate to have them."

"How do you know that?" Ali asked Dash.

"Long story," Dash sighed. "I'll tell you another time."

"That doesn't matter," Nicki spoke up. "Who is he possessing?"

"Lloyd," Nya muttered.

There was a moment of silence around the room. Then Ali spoke.

"That's why people were saying he's alive," she muttered.

"He would be alive," Dash told them, her voice quiet and soft. "They would need to be alive in order for him to possess them. But they would need to be weakened for him to take full control."  
"When do you think this happened?" Nicki asked.

"Most likely when Lloyd was shot," Dash said. "He would have been near death and the Overlord would have kept him alive, but barely. To the point where it wouldn't be noticeable that he was alive."

"That would be why we didn't find a body," Ali sighed. "The Overlord took over and took him along for the ride."  
Zack was hugging Nya tightly as she cried. Dash looked at Ali, seeing her slipping off in the direction Kai and Cole went in. She went to comfort Nya, leaving the two ninja to Ali.

Ali found Kai and Cole downstairs, in the basement of the small cabin. They were talking quietly to each other, and stopped when Ali walked in.

"What are we going to do about all this?" Cole asked Ali.

"Well, we need to address the fact that you two are the keys the Overlord will be after," Ali said. "If he gets either of you, he could easily lure us out and take the other one."

Kai nodded, listening.

"So, what do we do?" Cole asked.

Ali looked at Kai, and sighed.

"At this point, with the way everything is, there is only one thing we can do that will keep you both safe," Ali told them. "And you might not like it, Kai."  
Kai gulped as Ali turned and opened a cabinet behind them.

"Nicki told me about these being here," Ali sighed. "And until we have something better, it's all we can do."  
Kai watched in horror as Ali pulled out a vengestone chain with a cuff on the end of it and a lock on the other. She walked to the middle of the room and attached the lock to a hook hanging from the ceiling. She held the cuff and looked at Kai.

"You can't be serious," Kai muttered.

Cole placed a hand on Kai's shoulder, giving him a sympathetic look. Kai pulled his hands behind his back, looking at Ali.

"Kai, please, this is for your safety," Ali told him.

"No, I won't," Kai replied. "There has to be another way. Cole back me up here."

Cole went silent, not answering Kai. Cole let out a quiet sigh, and slowly stood up.

"I'm sorry, Kai," he muttered.

Kai watched in horror as Cole grabbed his arm. Kai struggled against Cole, but couldn't stop him with his super strength. Cole helped Ali put the cuff around Kai's wrist as the two turned to leave.

"You can't do this!" Kai cried out. "You can't leave me like this! Please! Don't leave me like this!"  
Cole could hear the pain, the fear behind Kai's words and in his voice. He realized how terrified his friend was, being left in that situation by his own teammates, his friends. After escaping the torture and chains of the Overlord. He glanced over his shoulder as he climbed out of the basement, seeing Kai curled into a ball, crying. What did they just do?


	7. Chapter 7 - Run Away

Kai pulled on the chain, trying to break it off. His tear stained cheeks and puffy eyes showed he had been crying. No one had come to check on him, or even talk to him. He was alone, and betrayed by his friends, his team, his sister.

"Come on," he muttered.

He wrapped his hand around the cuff, trying to pull on it. It didn't budge and Kai sighed. He looked up at the lock hanging from the ceiling. He knew that even if he could reach it, he wouldn't be able to unlock it. The room was pretty much empty except for a wooden bench and some cabinets, which were also empty. Unless someone came and broke him out, he was stuck.

"Why is everyone trapping me places," Kai muttered to himself.

"It's not that, Kai."

Kai's eyes snapped up, seeing a sympathetic Dash in the doorway.

"They're afraid," Dash said softly.

"Of me?" Kai questioned.

"Of the power you hold," Dash corrected him. "They locked you down here so you couldn't hurt anyone."

"I wouldn't hurt anyone, though," Kai frowned.

"Not on purpose," Dash sighed. "But with the new power in your veins, Ali felt like you might try to use them, and then you'll lose control and hurt someone."  
"So she thinks I'll go crazy," Kai frowned.

"Not exactly," Dash sighed. "I mean, I don't know how to put it."

"Can you let me out?" Kai asked.

"What?" Dash questioned.

"I don't want to be here anymore," Kai muttered. "If everyone only sees me as a danger to be around, I'll just leave."

"No, that's not what this is, Kai," Dash cried out.

"If you don't want to help, then leave," Kai frowned.

"But, Kai," Dash started to argue.

"Just leave," Kai growled.

Dash bit her lip, then turned and ran up the stairs. She paused halfway up, and turned back to Kai. She pulled paperclip from her pocket with a smirk on her face.

"If anyone asks, I was never here," Dash grinned.

She handed Kai the paperclip, then vanished into thin air. Kai looked around confused. He decided not to question it and used the clip to remove the chain. He silently crept towards the the main floor of the cabin. He pushed the door open, and found everyone else asleep. His sister and Cole were close to each other, tear streaks down his sisters cheeks. Ali was curled on a couch, sleeping softly. Nicki and Roy were in a corner, cuddled together in a deep sleep. What confused Kai was when he noticed Dash with Zack's arms tightly around her. There was no way that she was able to come down without waking anyone up.

"Keep quiet," a voice hissed. "We get the two Master wants, then book it without waking anyone else."

Kai gasped, his heart pounding his chest. Someone was coming for him and Cole. He ducked into the basement, standing on the top step. He listened as the door creaked open and two people slipped across the floor. He peeked around the corner, seeing Jay and Zane kneeling over Cole. Jay held out a cloth and quickly shoved it in Cole's mouth while Zane tied another one around his head to hold it in place. By then, Cole was slowly waking up. Zane pulled Cole's hands behind him and started tying them together. That's when Cole realized what was happening and started struggling and shouting muffled cries into the gag.

"Find the other one and get him too," Zane whispered. "Don't wake anyone else."

Jay nodded, looking around the room. Kai could see the terror in Cole's eyes as he thrashed around. He needed to do something, but he didn't want to give himself away either. He looked over at Cole again, seeing his still, looking at him. His eyes were pleading for help at Kai. He knew Kai was there, and at this point, Kai was his only hope. Then Kai noticed the unpowered light in the room, hanging above all the others.

"I can't find him," Jay whispered.

"Search the whole cabin," Zane replied. "He has to be here somewhere."  
Kai focused, hoping he could access one of the other powers. As Jay turned and started walking towards him, unaware that he was there, a spark appeared from Kai's finger tips. He grinned and shot the light with a bolt of lightning. It lit up, then exploded. In a split second, everyone in the cabin had jumped up, looking around. Jay ran to Zane's side as the nindroid lifted Cole onto his shoulder.

"They've got Cole!" Ali shouted.

"Get them!" Dash screamed.

Zane and Jay made a run for the door, but a blast of fire cut them off. Jay toppled over, colliding with the door. Zane fell to the ground, sending Cole flying and crashing right into a wall. Kai flinched, hearing the hard impact from Cole. Zane was quick to his feet, running back to Jay. Jay was quick to his feet and collecting Cole in his arms. Kai growled as Ali froze the ground under them. He realized he had done all he needed to, and the others would take care of everything else.

"Let's go," Zane hissed at Jay.

They turned and pulled open the door, running out. Ali was close behind them, and used the element of nature. A bunch of vines sprouted from the ground and wrapped around Cole, pulling him from Jay's grasp. Jay hissed, about to go for Cole again.  
"Jay, leave him! We'll get them another time," Zane ordered.

Jay nodded, running after Zane into the forest. Ali and Dash ran to Cole, pulling the vines off him and untying him.

"Cole, are you alright?" Dash asked.

"Why didn't you wake us?" Ali asked.

Dash pulled the gag off of the earth ninja as he sat up with Ali's help. Ali started untying the ropes on his wrists.

"I couldn't," Cole told them. "They had me gagged by the time I woke up and realized what was happening."

Once Ali had the ropes undone, Cole was on his feet and running into the cabin. Everyone else looked startled as he ran past them. Cole looked around the main room, then the back room, then the basement.

"No, no, no, no," Cole muttered.  
"What's wrong?" Nya asked him.

"He's gone, he's gone!" Cole cried out.

"Who's gone?" Ali asked, running next to Cole and Nya.

"Kai, he was right here," Cole said, pointing to the stairs. "He was the one who exploded the light. He was the one who woke you guys up."

"Did they get him then?" Dash asked.

Ali turned and walked into the back room. She paused, seeing everyone looking at her.

"He ran away," Ali muttered.

Everyone walked towards her, seeing her standing next to a shattered window.

"He broke this in the chaos, then climbed out and ran," she sighed.

She pulled a piece of red fabric off a broken shard. She sighed, shaking her head.

"What do we do?" Nya asked.

"We leave here," Ali turned to the others.

"What about Kai?" Cole asked. "What if he comes back here?"

"He won't," Ali sighed. "He left for a reason."  
Ali walked back towards the main room, a look of sorrow on her face. She looked back at the others.

"He doesn't trust us anymore," Ali told them. "He doesn't trust anyone."


	8. Chapter 8 - Trapped and Running

_**A bit of a longer chapter for the lack of uploads this weekend. I've just been too busy with everything from school, to skating, and family. Enjoy!  
**_ Kai collapsed on the ground. He had run until he couldn't run anymore. He pulled himself up and rested on the stump of an old tree, panting and looking around. He didn't know where he was, what time it was, or how far from everyone he was. He just knew he was alone again.

"You got away."

Or so he thought. He jumped, getting to his feet and looking around.

"Who's there?" he called out.

"Don't stress too much, boy," the voice said. "I'm only here to help."

A figure appeared in front of Kai, and he yelped, stumbling, tripping and falling to the ground.

"Don't recognize me?" he asked.

"No, who are you?" Kai frowned.

He laughed, grinning.

"The guy who saved your butt, and your friends," he grinned.

"What?" Kai questioned.

Then, right in front of his own eyes, he changed into Dash. Then he turned back to himself.

"That was you!" Kai shouted.

"It's always been me," he grinned. "I've been following you this whole time. I've been helping you escape, helping keep you safe. Although at one point, I wanted to leave you for the rats."  
Kai slowly got to his feet.

"Who are you?" Kai questioned.  
"Name's Tylor," he nodded. "Now, hurry up, we have places to go."  
"Why should I come with you exactly?" Kai asked, crossing his arms.

"Because if you don't, I can easily take you to the Overlord and get the prize that's on your head right now," Tylor smirked.

"You're evil," Kai glared.

"Not evil, I just don't like you," Tylor retorted.

Tylor started walking and Kai ran after him.

"Wait, if you could just turn me over for the money, why are you choosing to help me?" Kai asked as he caught up to the young dark haired boy.

"Because the love of my life wants you," he muttered. "That's the only reason. She wants to meet you and talk to you. She says we should be helping you, but I seriously doubt that."

"Who is she?" Kai asked.

"Like you need to know," Tylor frowned.

"Alright, where are we going then?" Kai asked.

"You never shut up," Tylor grumbled.

Kai rolled his eyes and decided to walk in silence for a while. He was trying to figure out where they were, and where they were heading. Just in case he had to run at some point. After several minutes of silence, they came across an opening in the forest. Tylor stopped, looking up at the sky. He turned on the spot, staring at the stars. Kai frowned as Tylor turned and started walking in another direction. He realized Tylor was just going to keep walking with or without him. Kai looked around, trying to come up with something.

With one last glance at Tylor, Kai booked it back into the forest. Unfortunately, as soon as he turned, Tylor noticed.

"Hey! Come back here!" Tylor shouted.

Kai stumbled over a tree root, pushing past the bushes and low lying branches. He could hear Tylor chasing him. Kai grabbed onto a tree branch, flipping over it and landing on top of it. He held his breath as Tylor ran past him. Kai jumped back down onto the ground, and ran in the other direction. He made it to the clearing he originally ran from, and slid to a halt. In front of him was a young girl with brown hair braided over her shoulder, hanging out of her hood that covered her face. Kai took a couple steps away from her as her smile twisted into a frown.

"Don't run, ninja," she jeered. "We only want to help.

Kai spun around and collided with another person. He rubbed his head, and looked up to see another boy with short black hair staring down at him. Kai gulped scrambling backwards on the ground until he ran into the girl.

"What do you want with me?" Kai asked.

Kai glance behind the boy when the bushes started moving. He watched Tylor emerge, shaken up.

"I'm sorry, I lost him," Tylor muttered with his head down.

When Tylor looked up and saw Kai between the two others, he sighed.

"Your lucky we came when we did," the girl hissed. "Otherwise you would have lost him, and Master would have had our heads."

Tylor quickly nodded,running over to the others.

"Master?" Kai muttered.

Kai felt two arms wrap under his arms and around his chest as he was pulled to his feet. He looked between the three people, worried.

"Alright, let's get back to base then," the girl said.

"What if he tries to run again, June?" the other boy asked.

Kai felt June tighten her grasp of his arm, casting a glare at the fire ninja.

"He won't if he knows what's good for him," she uttered.

Kai gulped as he was forced to walk forwards. He looked between the three surrounding him, trying to figure out if they were good or bad. He noticed Tylor and the other boy talking quietly to each other, and then looked back at June. She glanced at him, then looked ahead of them again.

"Don't worry, we don't want to hurt you," she whispered. "We're only going to help you. We want our world back to normal, and everyone back just as much as you do. Trust me."

There was one issue with what she said. One thing he just couldn't do. Trust her. He didn't trust anyone.

* * *

Cole sighed, running his fingers through Dash's hair. She slept softly, her head resting in his lap. Zack was cuddled up against her, her arms around him snuggly. Nya's head rest of his shoulder, her sleep a bit deeper than Dash's. Tears stained the water ninja's cheeks, seeing that she had cried for hours after Kai disappeared. Even though Ali had told them he had run off, they didn't know if he bumped into Jay or Zane while running. No one knew if he was safe from harm, or if he was captured yet again.

Cole looked up, seeing Ali staring at the small fire before them. She was the only other one awake. Nicki and Roy were cuddled, sleeping quietly against a tree stump.  
"What can we do?" Ali muttered to herself.

Cole reached for Dash's jacket, pulling it towards him. He moved slowly, trying not to disturb the sleeping people around him, as he slid the jacket under Dash's head, replacing it for his lap. Luckily, she never woke. Cole turned and slowly laid Nya's head next to Dash's as he pushed himself to his feet. He slipped over to sit next to Ali.

"We've messed up in multiple ways," Cole sighed. "We just have to keep pushing forwards. Even if it's not making much progress, we have to do something."

"But there is so much that we don't know," Ali whispered softly. "With our situation, it would be one wrong move, and we're done for."  
"We've already made several wrong moves," Cole muttered. "One costing us an ally and a teammate."

Ali bit her lip, then closed her eyes and shook her head.

"You should get some sleep," she told the earth ninja.

"I can't," Cole sighed.

"Because your a target?" Ali asked.

Cole simply nodded. With the group having no clue to Kai's location, the risk of losing Cole to the Overlord was even greater than before. If they lost him, whether or not if he had Kai, they would never get him back. At least, not in his current state.

"I just can't sleep knowing that my team is the way it is," Cole sighed. "Kai is broken, running around with no hope in finding him, Zane being hacked and controlled the way he is, and Jay, my best friend. I never, ever, wanted to see him in that state. And to know it will never be seen as the Overlord that did everything to everyone, even the people of Ninjago, but someone who was a hero."

Cole shook his head, sighing softly. His eyes landed on Nya.

"I know she saw him," he whispered softly. "She's been through the most pain, seen the worst out of everyone. She's seen how the people are being treated, how broken her brother is, what the Overlord's done with the love of her life."

Ali nodded, listening. Everyone was hurting and being torn apart.

"My life flashed before my eyes back there," Cole continued. "When _they_ had me tied up. I was helpless, weakened, useless. I could even see Kai considering leaving me in their clutches."

"He did that?" Ali asked.

"What?" Cole questioned.

"Was he the one who exploded to light?" Ali asked him.

"I think so," Cole frowned. "Why?"

"We need to find him," Ali stood up.

"Wait, where are you going?" Cole cried out.

Everyone jumped, waking up and becoming alert of their surroundings. Cole jumped to his feet, staring at Ali as she ran into the forest.

"You can't just leave us!" Cole shouted.

"I need to find Kai!" Ali shouted at him. "If he's able to access the other two elements in him, he's not only a danger to himself, but all of Ninjago as we know it."

Cole growled, then sprinted after the running girl. He couldn't hear anyone running after him, but his heart was heavily pounding in his ears. He onlys stopped when someone screamed behind him. He spun around, a look of horror on his face as he recognized the source of the scream. He started back in the direction he came from, pushing himself past everything in his path.

As he approached the source of the scream, he stumbled and tripped of a tree root sticking out of the ground. He started to push himself up of the ground, but froze on his knees. His eyes went wide, his heart stopping and his breath catching in his throat. His blue eyes friend towered over him, a wicked grin on his face.

"So, you came back for them after all," he taunted.

Cole scrambled backwards, colliding with a tree. He managed to glance behind Jay to see everyone trapped and tied up with Zane pointing a sword at them. Right as Cole turned back to Jay, the former blue ninja grabbed his arm and pulled him to his feet. Cole gulped, trying to pull free, but even with his super strength, he was unable to escape the new robotic grasp of his best friend.

"Jay, please, snap out of it," Cole pleaded, knowing it was useless. "This isn't you!"  
Cole froze as Jay yanked him close, their faces inches apart.

"This is me, Cole," Jay smirked. "Everything that happens, everything I do, is all me."

Cole's face turned from horror to sorrow when his friend said that. Jay stepped back, allowing Cole a moment to comprehend what he was just told. Luck for Cole, it also allowed Ali a moment to attack and tackle Jay to the ground. Cole's expression changed to shock instantly, staring at Jay and Ali struggling to pin the other to the ground.

"Zane! I need back up!" Jay shouted.

Cole's eyes flicked up as Zane snapped something at the rest of Cole's friends, before turning in his direction.

"Cole! Run!" Ali shouted.

"But what about everyone else!" Cole cried.

"You need to get away from here!" Ali snapped at him. "You know they want you more than anyone else here! Just go!"  
Cole looked up as Zane pushed closer to him. With no seconds thoughts, he took one last glance at Dash, tied up and trying to comfort a crying Zack, before turning and sprinting deeper into the forest. Hopefully, he would be able to get away safely, and find someone to help him.


	9. Chapter 9 - Wanted Together

_**So, um, RandomDragon 2.0. You. Me. End of Chapter. Private messaging. You're review, girl. Just how did you know? How!**_  
 _ **Anyways, Enjoy!**_

Kai woke up, hearing the faint whispers of the others around him. They made it to a small cave underground, which they called their base. Much to his dismay, they did make Kai sleep in a cage. Even though he refused, they had convinced him he would be safer in it than if he was free. Especially since the cage was attached to the cave floor. At least with these people, Kai had agreed to the circumstances and wasn't forced into it.

"Do you think Master will be happy that we found him?" Kai heard Tylor ask.

Kai looked up, seeing Tylor and Stan near the entrance to their hideout. He remembered that June went out to find their Master.

"They're coming, I can hear them," Stan replied. "They aren't too far away."

Kai listened as the two boys continued talking quietly, and picked up on two different voices. Two familiar voices.

"He's in here with the boys," June said.

Kai watched June slip into the cave, and another person followed. Kai stared at the second person, slowly backing into the cage with terror.

"Right here," June pointed at him.

The other person walked up to him, and kneeled before the cage, looking at him.

"I guess I've hurt you before, then," she muttered.

"What?" Kai questioned.

"I know now, that I've done some horrible things to multiple people, including you," she whispered. "I don't remember it, but I regret it. I'm sorry, but I want to help you against the Overlord."

Kai looked at her, hearing a different, friendlier person than before. She was different, a changed person.

"Can you forgive me?" she asked.

"On two conditions," Kai said.

"Alright," she nodded, listening.

"One. You let me out of this cage," Kai said. "And two, you promise to help me get the others back."

"Deal," she smiled.

She opened the cage, and helped Kai out of it and to his feet. Kai noticed that June, Tylor and Stan had all tensed up, looking near the entrance of the cave.

"Someone's coming," June whispered.

"What do we do, Linda?" Tylor turned to the girl next to Kai.

She glanced at Kai, seeing that he was frightened. She motioned to the cage, and remembering what he was told the night before, he jumped in and locked it shut. Linda walked towards the entrance, past the rest of the group.

"Tylor, stand guard and keep Kai safe," she ordered. "Stan, June, hunt for this trespasser. If an ally, bring them back, if a foe, do not engage without backup. Understand?"

June and Stan nodded, following Linda out of the cave. Tylor ran to Kai, sliding down onto his knees next to the cage.

June pulled her bow out from the tree where it was hidden, slinging her quiver over her shoulder. She looked up, seeing Stan halfway up to tree.

"Linda, heads up," Stan called down.

Linda caught a bag as it fell next to her. She attached it to her belt before looking up to catch a katana. Stan landed beside her, carrying a katana for himself. Both of them pulled half masks over their mouths and noses.

"June, take the northern area," Linda pointed north for the cave. "Stan, take the Southwest area. I'll cover everything else. Signal when you find anyone. If they're armed, do not engage."  
June and Stan nodded before turning and starting in their assigned directions. June was quick to swing herself into the trees above her, able to see more around her. She silently jumped from branch to branch, surveying the area as she moved further and further from their shelter. She was beginning to think that their alarm was false and no one was around them when she made it near the edge of their alarm zone.

She sighed, sliding an arrow back in the quiver with the others. As she turned to head back towards her base, a small movement caught her eye. She turned to get a closer look at the source, and saw a person. She pulled the arrow out again, loading it in her bow. She aimed in their direction, waiting for a clear shot. She knew the figure was getting closer to her, and she didn't know if they were armed. All she knew was that they were alone.

With no second thoughts, she fired the arrow at the first chance she got. When they came into her view, she saw it was a young boy, dressed in dark colours with black hair like Tylor's. She released the arrow, sending it flying through the air and into the tree right next to the boy, right beside his shoulder. He looked around, frightened. June quickly pulled another arrow, loading and aiming before the boy could recover. As he turned to run, she shot another arrow which caught the sleeve of his shirt, pinning it against the tree. He pulled on his sleeve, attempting to free himself. June reloaded a third arrow, and aimed at his other arm. With one swift motion, both his arms were pinned, trapping him against two trees. June nodded with satisfactory, knowing he wasn't going anywhere. She pulled a whistle from a side pouch on her quiver and blew three short blasts into it. The boy looked up into the trees when she did that, and she jumped down, landing in front of him. She quickly pulled another arrow, loaded her bow and aimed at him.

"One wrong move and this arrow will go right through you, kid," June frowned.

He didn't move, didn't speak, only stared at the arrow that was currently aimed at his chest. He gulped as Linda and Stan ran in from different directions to join them.

"What do you want with me?" he cried out.

"I think he sees us as the bad guys," Stan muttered.

"Are you with the Overlord?" June asked him.

"I'm wanted by him, but not with him," the boy replied. "He just took my friends."

"Cole," Linda muttered.

The boy's eyes fluttered to her as she pulled her mask down.

"Linda!" he shouted. "Wha-bu-how-huh?"

Linda shook her head, almost laughing to herself. She walked up to Cole, pulling him free from the arrows.

"Your friend had the same reaction," she chuckled. "You want to come see him?"

"Who? Are you with the Overlord?" Cole asked. "Are you taking me to him?"

"Whoa, never in a million years would we help that crazy weirdo," June muttered.

"Then who is with you?" Cole asked.

"Come see," Linda smiled softly.

Linda turned and started walking away. Cole ran after her, Stan and June following close behind the two. Cole's heart pounded, feeling as if he might be walking into a trap, and that they were going to turn him over for some sort of cash reward. Then he saw an opening leading to an underground cave. Linda jumped into it, followed by June.  
"After you," Stan motioned.

Cole gulped, then jumped down. He landed on his feet, looking around.  
"Cole!"

Cole looked up as a set of arms wrapped around his waist. He looked down to see Kai hugging him tightly.

"Kai, you're safe," Cole grinned, returning the hug.  
"But the last time I saw you, you were with the rest of the ninja group that remained," Tylor frowned. "What happened to them?"  
Kai looked at Cole, horrified.  
"What happened to my sister?" Kai cried out. "Is she Ok? Is she hurt?"  
"We were ambushed," Cole sighed. "Zane and Jay found us and took them. Ali and I were about to get away, but Jay found us so she held him off while I ran."

"You two are all that's left then," June sighed.

"They are the most important of everyone, though," Linda added. "If the Overlord gets both of them, everything we've done would have been pointless."  
Kai flinched at the thought of the Overlord having both of them, and Cole rested a comforting hand on the red ninja's shoulder.

"We won't let that happen," Cole nodded firmly at Kai. "We've got each other's backs, and all of yours."

"But what do we do now?" Kai asked.

"We'll rest for now," Linda said. "I'll figure something out. June, do you want to get a fire going?"

June nodded, walking to a corner were there was a stack of firewood. Kai took Cole by the hand, and lead him towards the cage. Kai let Cole go before crawling in himself.

"What are you doing?" Cole asked.

"It makes me feel safe," Kai replied.

Cole sat next to Kai, outside of the cage and nodded. Kai was silent for several moments, then spoke softly.

"What do you think will happen if we get caught?" Kai asked.

Cole was silent, thinking about the question. It was a bit sudden, but he had been questioning the same thing for a while now.

"I don't know," Cole sighed. "I just don't want to think about it."  
"Do you really want to know what will happen?"

Kai and Cole looked up, seeing Linda looking down at them.

"You know?" Kai asked.

"Not for certain," Linda replied, sitting next to Cole. "But going off of past events, I can give you my best guess to what will happen. But that question is, do you want to know?"  
Cole and Kai exchanged glances before nodding. They knew they might regret this decision, but they wanted to know what they might be getting into.


	10. Chapter 10 - Gone

Nya woke up with a really bad headache. She looked around and noticed where she was. In the Overlords base. She was tied to a chair, venge stone straps holding her down. She looked around her, finding Dash and Zack tied to her right and Nicki, Roy and Ali to her left. Ali was closest to her, and the only other one awake.

"What's going on?" Nya whispered.

"We were captured," Ali replied.

Nya then frantically started looking around.

"Where's Cole?" Nya asked.

"That's what I want to know."

Nya looked up to see the Overlord staring at her. She gulped, remaining still.

"Oh, so you aren't going to talk now," he sighed. "I think I have something that could change your mind."

"Like what?" Nya asked.

"How about your little friend?" he smirked. "Oh, what was his name again? Lloyd?"

"Oh, don't think you can fool us with that "He's alive" game," Nya muttered.

"He is," Dash muttered.

Nya looked over at the dark haired girl. She didn't know when Dash woke up, but she was awake now. And that would come in handy for the others.

"He can only possess a living body, with his captor alive inside," Dash muttered. "If they die, he dies with them."

"Why are you so smart?" the Overlord hissed.

"Because my father told me about you," Dash muttered.

"Somethings wrong with her," Zack whispered.

"What do you mean?" Nya asked.

"Silence, child," the Overlord snapped. "Jay, bring the girl with me. Zane, guard the others to stop them from escaping."

Jay unstrapped Dash before pulling her to her feet and leading her out of the room. Zane stood near the door they left through, staring at each of them.

"You said something was wrong?" Ali asked Zack.

"She was speaking so weirdly," Zack muttered. "I've never heard her speaking like that."

"If Zack is this worried, something is wrong," Roy chimed in. "He and Dash have known each other for years. If something was wrong, he would know."

Nya looked up, seeing Zane watching them.

"What are we going to do?" Ali asked. "We need to get out of here somehow."  
Nya looked over at little Zack, seeing the worried look on his face. He seemed to be more worried about Dash than he was himself.

"Which one?" Zane muttered.

Nya's eyes quickly turned to him, seeing Zane staring into space.

"I'll bring her," Zane muttered.

Zane stepped away from the door and towards the captured group. Nya's heart skipped a beat when he stopped in front of her. He undid the straps on her and pulled her to her feet. Nya knew she had to do something. As Zane grabbed her arm and started leading her away, she ripped herself free from him. She ran to Zack, who was the closest to her and grabbed a hold of the strap over his left wrist.

"Not so fast," Zane hissed.

Zane yanked Nya away from Zack, causing her to yelp and nearly fall over. The others all watched as Zane dragged Nya into the room with Jay and Dash.

"Poor Nya," Ali muttered.

Zack realized his left strap was loosened from Nya to the point where he could pull his arm free.

"I'm free," Zack grinned. "Nya freed me."  
"Quick, untie us," Roy said.

"But Nya," Zack glanced at the door.

"You can't take all of them, Zack, not on your own," Ali told him. "Not even all of us together can take them down. We need to get out of here."

Zack nodded, moving to Ali to untie her. He got to her, and freed her seconds before Zane returned.

"Stop!" Zane shouted.

"Get out of here!" Roy shouted.

"What about you and Nicki?" Zack cried.

Ali picked up the boy.

"We'll get them another time," Ali replied.

Ali turned to run when a rope wrapped around her ankles. She looked to see Zane charging at them. It was then that Jay darted through the door, ready to help. Ali glanced to see Roy looking at her, terrified and worried. She turned to look out the window. Something was telling her to do something that she might regret. She didn't want to let them win everything, and it was the only option left.

"Hold on," Ali cried.

"To what?" Zack cried.

Then Zack screamed, somersaulting through the air and crashing through the window. Roy watched as Zack toppled out of sight, and Jay ran to the window.

"He's gone," Jay turned to Zane.

"One less kid to babysit," Zane muttered.

"No, he's gone gone," Jay cried out. "There's no one there."

Zane turned from restraining Ali, giving Jay a confused look.

"Elaborate," Zane frowned.

"No body, no blood, no nothing," Jay pointed at the shattered window.

Zane finished restraining Ali before running to Jay's side.

"Where'd he go then?" Zane cried out, looking out the window.

"We need to tell Master," Jay urged.

"You tell him, I'll stand guard," Zane replied.

Jay nodded, running to the door. He pushed it open, seeing the scene that was unfolding behind it. Nya was before him, holding a knife in her hand, glaring at the Overlord. The Overlord wasn't what one would call defenseless, but he was unarmed. Jay wrapped his arms around Nya, pinning them to her side. The knife in her hand dug straight into her leg. She screamed, falling limp in Jay's arms.

"Get her back on the table," the Overlord instructed.

Jay nodded, picking up the water ninja. She yelled and squirmed despite the cut on the side of her leg that screamed in pain. Jay pinned her against the table, allowing the Overlord to strap her to it.

"What are you doing to me?" Nya cried out.

"Don't worry, sweet," Jay smirked. "This won't take long. Then we'll be together again."  
"No! Let me go!" Nya screamed, fighting against her straps.

"Let's just get this done," Jay muttered.

Jay picked up a syringe from the counter and stuck in Nya's arm. He injected the serum into her arm, allowing her to calm and let herself fall asleep before removing it and allowing the Overlord to do his work.


	11. Chapter 11 - Explain Everything

"Tell us," Kai urged her.

"You might not like it," Linda warned.

"If it could be in our future, it would be better if we knew," Cole told her.

"Alright," Linda sighed. "Tylor, Stan, June, you might want to listen in."

June walked over and sat across from Kai, while Tylor and Stan continued to work on the fire.

"So, what will happen if we're caught?" Kai asked.

Linda sighed.

"From what we know, the Overlord wants the Golden Powers," Linda said. "All that's left to do is combine the element of earth with the other three. So he would start by taking your power, Cole, and giving it to Kai."

Cole glanced as Kai shifted uncomfortably.

"The powers would come together to create the Golden Power, but it would take an enormous amount of energy and render Kai defenseless against anyone who attacks him."

"That's not what happened with Lloyd the first time," Cole frowned.

"Lloyd was also the grandson of the First Spinjitzu Master," Linda said softly. "The power belonged to him, and he was born to be able to handle the strength of it."

"It won't kill me, will it?" Kai asked.

"I don't believe so," Linda sighed. "But I cannot be certain. I have never encountered this situation before."

Kai gulped, shifting uncomfortably on the ground.

"We won't let it get to that," Cole cut in. "He will never get us."

"Actually, the likelihood of all of us being able to remain away from his clutches and get your friends back is very small," June muttered.

"Not helping," Cole hissed at her.

"I'm only trying to help," June replied.

"More like freak us out," Cole muttered.

June glared at him, and Linda placed a soothing hand on the shaking Kai's leg. He looked up at her.

"What would happen after the powers are created in me?" Kai whimpered.

"Well, one of two things," Linda sighed. "He could either take the powers the same way he did with Lloyd. That would be extracting them with a machine."

"Would it be painful?" Cole asked.

"In the state Kai would be in, it would be almost relaxing for him," Linda replied.

"What's the other option?" June asked.

As Linda went to reply, a portal appeared in the room. They all jumped to their feet, forming a protective wall between the portal and the ninja. June pulled out her bow, loading it and aiming it at the portal. A scream echoed from it, and a little boy appeared. He moaned, pushing himself up.

"Zack?" Cole questioned.

Zack looked up, terrified. Then he realized who called him and he relaxed. He jumped up and ran to Cole, hugging him.

"Cole," he muttered into Cole's shirt. "You're safe."

"What happened?" Cole asked the young child. "How did you get here?"

"Where did that portal come from?" Kai questioned.

"I don't know," Zack shook his head. "The last thing I remember was Ali throwing me out a window. Now I'm here."

"Was he with the Overlord?" Linda asked, sounding worried.

Zack nodded, nervous. Linda glanced between Kai and Cole, seeing them concerned.

"This isn't good, not good at all," she muttered.

"What's going on?" Kai asked.

"If the Overlord placed a tracker on him, he could have droids on their way here at this very minute," Linda said.

June pushed Cole aside, kneeling before the young boy.

"Were you asleep at any point while the Overlord had you?" June asked.

"Yeah," Zack muttered.

"Did you feel weird when you woke up?" June asked him.

"No," Zack shook his head. "I felt fine. Only Dash was acting weird."

"Dash?" Linda questioned.

"Yeah," Zack turned to her. "Aqua eyes, dark purple hair."

"Master of Dark Magic," Linda muttered.

"What?" Kai questioned.

"You said Dash was acting weird," Linda kneeled before Zack. "In what way?"

"She wasn't acting normal," Zack shook his head. "She was speaking monotonically, and staring into space without moving. The they took her into another room, and she didn't even fight back."

"This isn't good," Linda muttered.

"What did they do to her?" Cole asked Linda.

"It's the only logical explanation," Linda sighed. "I just don't want to believe it."

"Tell me," Cole pleaded her. "You need to tell us. Tell me."

Linda bit her lip, then spun around and looked at Cole. Kai was frightened next to Zack.

"He's controlling her," Linda muttered.

"She didn't look evil," Zack frowned. "Why are you saying she's being controlled?"

"Not evil," Linda shook her head. "With her powers, someone could control her mind. She wouldn't be able to understand what was happening to her, she would be in a trance like state."

"That sounds like the way she was," Zack pointed out.

"Then I'm almost certain someone was controlling her," Linda nodded.

"What could they do if she was being controlled?" Cole asked.

"Access her powers, like they would to safe Zack," Linda replied.

"Are they on our side then?" Kai asked.

"We cannot be sure," Linda sighed. "Unless we know who they are, we might never know."

Zack walked over to the bag Kai had brought with him from the cabin, and looked in it.

"This is Dash's bag," he frowned.

"So you're just going to move on like that?" Stan frowned.

"No, she was terrified when she couldn't find it while we were packing up at the cabin," Zack told them. "It must have something important in it if she was this worried."

"It is possible she would have a spellbook in it," Linda muttered.

"Should we look?" Tylor asked.

"Dash said she didn't know about the magic she had when Ali told her," Cole cut in. "I doubt she would have-"

Cole trailed off, watching Linda pull an old book from the bag. She looked up at Cole, shocked. The expression on his face showed that he was just as shocked.

"Why didn't she say anything?" Cole muttered.

"She didn't want to."

Everyone screamed, jumping at the voice. Linda fumbled and dropped the book before scrambling away from it.

"What the heck is that thing!" Linda shouted.

"I'm not a thing!" the book shouted.

"Do you know Dash?" Zack asked.

"You bet I do," the book spat. "I've taught her everything she knows."

"Who are you?" Cole asked. "I mean, what are you?"

"All you need to know is that my name is Booker," the book replied.

"Whatever that thing is, I don't like it," Kai muttered.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Who said that?" Booker hissed.

Zack picked up the book and turned it so it could see Kai.

"You," Booker glared.

"What did I do?" Kai whimpered.

"A thing! Is that all I am to you? A thing?" Booker snapped.

"Don't ruffle your pages, dude," Tylor jokes.

"He should know better than to call me, a Magic book, a thing!" Booker snapped.

"How would he know?" Cole asked. "He doesn't know anything about this type of thing."

"What are you talking about?" Booker questioned. "Now you're confusing me."

"Ok, we all need to back up for a second here," June cut in. "Everything's happening so quickly, and I can't keep up."

"What I'm getting from this is that Dash control's magic and never told us, we have her book that apparently can talk and has an attitude issue," Linda started.

"Hey!" Booker snapped.

"And now, Booker is claiming Kai knows something about magic," Linda frowned.

"Exactly," June cried out. "That's where you lost me!"

"Can you explain more?" Zack asked.

"Can you take me over to him?" Booker asked.

"Who?" Zack questioned.

"Fireboy over there," Booker replied.

"Don't bring him to me," Kai moaned.

Zack ignored Kai, picking up Booker and bringing him to the red ninja. Kai was hesitant, then reached to take the book from Zack. His fingers slipped over the cover before he wrapped his hands around the book. A wave of exhaustion and dizziness hit Kai almost instantly.

"Kai, what's wrong?" Cole ran to his friend.

Kai's vision blurred as he stared at the book. He swayed slightly before his eyes closed and he collapsed on his side.

Voices rang in his head, images and colour flashed before his eyes. He didn't know what was happening anymore. Then everything calmed and went black. Then an image formed. On the Bounty, with Ali holding Lloyd while he, Nya and Zane looked around.

"I mean he's gone, stupid!" Lloyd snapped at him.

The image swirled to a forest. Lloyd kneeled over him, a pained look on his face.

"I'm not abandoning you," he said softly. "I don't want to be left alone. Never again, Kai."

The scene changed, darkening to a dimly lit room. Cole sat beside him, a set dragon wings on his back.

"Kirra?" Cole replied, puzzled. "I guess you know her by her other name. Dash, I think."

"Dash isn't her real name?" Kai questioned.

"No, it never has been," Cole replied.

The image swirled again, showing a quick image of the ground hundreds of feet below him for a moment before changing again. A stone hit Nicki and she collapse, no words said from the images flashing before him. Then he found himself in a darkened room again, with Lloyd in front of him, chained to a wall.

"I'm sorry I couldn't stop any of this," Kai mumbled.

"What?" Lloyd asked, confused.

"Lloyd, it's me," Kai then said. "I'm under my own control again."

The imaged swirled into a house, where his sister and Jay were kissing with passion in front of him, Lloyd and a group of girls he didn't recognize. It lasted a couple seconds before changing yet again. This time, he was in Zane's room.

"Zane, you know that you can tell me if something's wrong," Mai said calmly.

"I said nothing is wrong," Zane frowned. "Now back off!"

The red eyes stood out in the darkness, the red eyes from Zane. His mind went fuzzy for several moments before clearing to Lloyd being frozen. The words that echoed in his mind.

"You killed him," Lloyd said softly. "You killed everyone."

The line that forever haunted him. The pain, anger, confusion and sorrow in his voice as he said it. And the look of betrayal in his eyes. The emerald eyes that stared at Kai. The image swirled again before he could say anything. Golden dust surrounded him as he looked around. The images flashed before him, unconscious Cole, frightened Jay, terrified Nya, Nadakhan. It stopped with them on a cliffside, Nya in front of him.

"How can you say that!" Nya shouted at her brother. "How can you say that about your own teammate!"

The tears streaming from her cheeks.

"Nya, understand what you're saying here," Kai spoke.

The pain in her eyes.

"No! I can't lose him!" Nya cried.

The shattering of hearts as Kai's world darkened. Three voices echoed in his head.

"I don't want to be left alone, not again."

Lloyd.

"I just want everything back to normal again. Like it was before."

Nya.

"I wish we never met you!"

Cole.

He was the cause of everything. After all this time, he was the reason. The reason everything was happening.

Kai woke with Linda and Cole leaning over him. The worried expressions on their faces showed that something had happened to him. Linda dabbed a damp cloth on his face, pulling away when his eyes opened.

"Are you alright?" Cole spoke up.

"What happened?" Kai asked.

"You fainted," Linda replied.

"He had a memory," Booker commented. "He knows the secret."

"What is he talking about?" Cole asked.

Kai looked at the earth ninja. He was trying to figure out how to tell him what had just happened, but he didn't have a clue himself. All he knew was that Lloyd was right all along. Something had happened that none of them remembered. Something big.


	12. Chapter 12 - How in What World

"Kai, what's wrong?" Cole asked. "What is he talking about?"  
Kai looked around confused. Everything was still piecing together in his mind, but he was unable to make any sense of it.

"How?" Kai slowly sat up. "How is any of this possible?"

He looked at Booker, hoping for answers.

"The only way I can tell you, is if you tell them," Booker smiled.

Kai looked at Booker, confused.

"Kai, what happened?" Cole asked. "What is he talking about?"  
"Do you remember what Lloyd said when he woke up back a while ago?" Kai asked softly.

"Yeah, he was delirious," Cole frowned. "What does this have to do with anything?"

"He was right," Kai muttered.

"Oh great, now he's delirious," Cole moaned, throwing his hands in the air.

"What do you mean?" June asked Kai.

"I remember it all too, I just don't understand how," Kai muttered.

"Droid copter!" Tylor shouted, jumping into the cave. "It's about five minutes out!"  
"How did they find us?" Linda cried, jumping to her feet.

"Zack," Stan pointed at the young boy holding Booker.

"Prepare to defend the ninja, fellas," Linda ordered. "You three, or four I guess, stay put."  
Kai, Cole, Zack and Booker watched as Linda, June, Tylor and Stan disappeared into the forest. Kai and Cole exchanged worried looks, realizing this might be it for them.

"Open me!" Booker blurted out.

"What?" Kai and Cole questioned.

"Kai, open me," he repeated.

Kai looked over at Cole, unsure of what to do. Cole nodded, and Kai reached to the book. He pulled open the cover, looking at it.

"Page 12, kid," Booker groaned. "Come on, it's not that hard."  
"You didn't tell me what page, you just said to open you," Kai snapped back.

"Feisty," Booker mocked.

"Oh shut up," Kai moaned.

He flipped to the page and saw a spell.

"What is this?" Kai frowned.

"Just follow my instructions, kid," Booker hissed. "Zack, hand me to Kai."  
Zack handed Booker over the the reluctant Kai, who held him in his hands.

"What now?" Kai asked.

"Cole and Zack, hold his shoulders," Booker ordered.

Cole and Zack placed their hands on Kai's shoulders.

"Read the page, Kai," Booker said.

"How am I supposed to read this?" Kai cried out. "It's in some ancient language."

"Kai, we're running out of time," Cole urged him. "We need to do something."  
Kai looked at the page, and took a deep breath.

"Acada elemis totil jemard lipus," Kai said, trying to pronounce each word.

A purple aura swirled around them, then covered them.

"What's happened?" Cole cried out.

"I don't know!" Kai replied.

"What did you do?" Zack asked.

After a moment, everything calmed down, and they looked around. They were in a different area, on an opened beach, with a shimmering lake before them.

"What is this place?" Cole asked, looking around with amazement.

"Welcome to the Elemental Oasis," Booker said. "Otherwise known as the Acada elemis totil."

"That teleported us here?" Cole asked.  
"Yes, and no one can track us here," Booker smiled. "No one other than a magic user and the masters from the Elemental Alliance have come here."  
"Has Dash been here before?" Cole asked.  
"Nope, I've never brought her here before," Booker replied.  
"What about the others?" Kai asked.

"We can't do anything for them now without giving away our position," Booker replied. "They'll be fine."  
"What should we do now?" Cole asked.

"Swimming!" Zack cried, running to the water.

Kai and Cole laughed as Zack splashed into the water.

"You enjoy yourselves," Booker told them. "Relax and have fun."

"But everyone else is in danger," Kai said. "We need to help them in one way other another."  
"Right now, I think he's right," Cole sighed. "We don't know anyone's whereabouts or condition. The best thing we could do for them is to stay out of harm's way and try to let things sort themselves out a bit before we jump in to battle again."

Cole turned and started towards Zack in the water. Kai stood on the sandy beach, looking at the two in the water.

"You're still confused, aren't you," Booker grinned.

"I just don't understand," Kai sighed. "Nothing is making any sense."

"Because of the memories," Booker asked.

"Is that really what happened?" Kai asked him.

"It was, and no one knows," Booker smiled. "But you have dark magic, hence why Zack came to you, and why the droids found you. Dash could sense your magic."  
Kai sighed. Kai looked out at the crystal clear water, seeing Cole laughing while Zack splashed around playfully.  
"What makes this place any different?" he asked.

"A protective barrier around it, allowing anyone within it to be hidden from anything and everything," Booker explained.

Kai turned and looked into the forest. He glanced back at the lake, at Zack and Cole, before walking into the forest.

"Where are you going?" Booker asked.

Kai was silent for a moment, looking around.

"I want you to teach me," Kai said. "Teach me magic."  
"Whoa, you already have a lot of power to deal with," Booker cried out. "Why do you want to learn more?"

"I want everyone to remember what happened, like how I remember," Kai said. "I want everything back to normal, back to how it was before that wish."  
"That's asking for much more than a little magic can do," Booker told him.

"It won't just be the magic," Kai said. "I'm going to do this too."

"I want you to know something," Booker said.

"Spill," Kai nodded.

"Sometimes, a secret is kept that way for a reason," Booker told him.

"What does that even mean?" Kai frowned.  
"There was a reason I had Dash keep all this a secret and play along with everything as long as she did," Booker said.

"She knows?" Kai asked.

"Yes," Booker confirmed. "And she didn't tell because I didn't want _him_ to know about it."  
"Who?" Kai asked.

"Cole," Booker replied quietly.

"Why can't he know?" Kai frowned.

"If he knows, everything would change," Booker replied. "Nothing would be the same ever again. He can never know the truth."

Kai looked out, seeing Cole and Zack in the water again. What would change? How would things be different, and how drastically?


	13. Chapter 13 - Magical Friendships

Kai slowly flowed through the motions Booker taught him. A purple aura surrounded his hands, trailing in small tails as he focused on the energy. His eyes were closed lightly, his breathing soft and steady as he stepped and leaned to his left. He flowed both arms to his left, lifting his right foot from the ground and spinning on his left. His hands flew above his head as he spun around, changing his position to a fighting stance. One arm curved over his head while the other came down in front of his hip. He leaned on his left leg, straightening his right one. He paused for a moment, listening to his surroundings. He swiftly dropped his left arm from above his head, shifting his weight to his right leg. He swung his left leg beside his right one, planting his feet about shoulder length apart, his arms extended in front of him. The aura from his hands swirled into a sphere, Kai's brows furrowed with concentration.

"Qui, chu pata," Kai muttered softly.

The aura swirled in front of him, then dove towards the ground. It weaved around on the ground before swirling and climbing a tree. It swirled and created a portal before him.

"You can look now," Booker told him.

Kai opened his eyes, seeing the portal before him. His eyes glowed a soft purple as he stared at it.

"Say it," Booker told him.

"Qui'ella sinya," he said.

The portal swirled around, creating an image in it. Kai looked over his shoulder, seeing Zack and Cole anxiously watching. He turned back as the portal created an image of his sister. Kai gasped softly, his eyes widening quickly. He watched the image change from his sister to something he never wanted to see. She looked like Jay. Metal covering different parts of her. Her outfit darkly coloured. And beside her, all the others that had gone missing; June, Tylor, Stan, Ali, Nicki and Roy. Locked in a cell. Unconscious.

"What about Dash?" Zack asked quietly.

"Qui'ella masica," Kai muttered.

The magic swirled and showed Dash talking with Zane and Jay, while the Overlord worked on something behind them.

"I can't hear them," Cole frowned.  
"No one can," Booker explained. "It only will show you what's happening."

Kai blinked his eyes, the portal diminishing before them as his eyes reverted to their normal colour. He turned, looking at Cole and Zack.

"Someone was missing," Kai said.

"What?" Cole questioned.

"Linda wasn't there," Kai told him.

"Kai, she's nothing but a crook," Cole frowned. "Why should we care about her? For all we know, she could still be allied with the Overlord and be after us."  
"She wasn't like that," Kai insisted. "At least, not to me."

"I don't know about you, but I don't trust her," Cole said.

Cole climbed to his feet, glaring at Kai.

"People can change," Kai growled at him.

"And some people never will," Cole growled back. "She is one of them."

"You don't know that!" Kai snapped. "All you know is how to-"

Kai cut himself off, looking away quickly. What he was about to tell Cole would have revealed the forgotten events. The ones Cole could never know about.

"How to what?" Cole growled. "What, Kai?"

"Nothing," Kai hissed.

"I sense some tension here," Booker chimed in. "What happened?"

"I don't know," Zack sighed, picking up Booker.

"Someone thinks he so special because he has all this power," Cole cried out at Kai.

"You think I want all of this!" Kai snapped back. "You think I had a choice in any of this!"

"Do you think I had a choice to be stuck with you?" Cole snapped back.

"What are you saying?" Kai glared.

"What I'm saying is that I wish you never escaped the Overlord," Cole spat. "Maybe none of this would have happened and I would still be with the rest of the team safe and sound. Maybe I would still have Dash at my side."

"Are you saying Dash is more important to you than I am?" Kai cried out.

"All I know is that she wouldn't keep secrets like you do!" Cole snapped.

"You don't need to know everything, Cole," Kai yelled.

"Enough!" Booker snapped.

Cole and Kai turned to seeing Zack about to cry, hugging Booker tightly. Booker frowned at both of them.

"You two are fighting like children!" Booker snapped. "There are more important things to worry about right now."  
Kai and Cole looked at each other, their expressions softened. They looked back at Zack, seeing how scared the little boy was.

"We're sorry, Zack," Kai muttered.

"Yeah, Booker's right," Cole added. "Right now we need to get along for everyone's sake."

"How about you two make up," Booker said. "Until you know you won't argue anymore, you stay here. Zack, let's go back to the beach."

Zack nodded and turned towards the beach. Kai and Cole watched him walk away. Kai sighed and sank to the ground.

"What are we doing anymore?" Kai muttered.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you," Cole sighed.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you," Kai replied.

"Friends?" Cole asked.

Kai looked up, seeing Cole extending a hand to him. Kai nodded, taking his hand.

"Friends," Kai smiled softly.

"Come on, let's go see Zack and Booker," Cole said.

"Go without me," Kai muttered. "I need a moment."

Cole looked at Kai before shrugging and walking off after Zack. Kai looked up, hearing Cole disappear. He sighed to himself, looking up at the sky. (Untouchable by Tritonal and Cash Cash)  
" _We've been wondering in the dark. A million miles apart going nowhere_ ," Kai sang softly. " _Believe that even if we're lost, you know it won't be long 'til we get there. Spinning 'round no control. Burning down, letting go. We've been wondering in the dark, but no matter where we are, just remember_."  
Kai sat up, looking around. He smiled, turning to look back up at the sky.  
" _We rise and we fall. We'll stay, we'll stay untouchable_ ," Kai sang out. " _Yeah, after it all, we'll stay, we'll stay untouchable._ "

He listened around him, thinking about everything. Looking back at everything that happened to them that no one else knew about. Things that he couldn't tell Cole. He snapped from his thoughts we he heard another voice singing near him. To him.  
" _Time is slipping through our hands, we're sinking in the sands of forever_."

Kai looked up, seeing Cole standing near him. His eyes closed as he sang.  
" _Light, surrender to the dark, but we can make a spark here together_ ," he sang, smiling.

" _Hanging on by a thread_ ," Kai sang.

" _We will climb back again_ ," Cole sang.

" _Time is slipping through our hands_ ," Kai sang to him.

" _It's hard to understand, but remember_ ," Cole sang back.

" _We rise and we fall. We'll stay, we'll stay untouchable,_ " Kai sang out.

" _Yeah, after it all, we'll stay, we'll stay untouchable_ ," Cole replied back.

Cole opened his eyes, smiling at Kai.

"It's true," Cole grinned. "We'll stay untouchable by them. We will save them."

Kai nodded, smiling. Cole walked over and took Kai by the hand. He pulled the red ninja to his feet, and into a hug.


	14. Chapter 14 - Caught

Night had fallen, and everyone was sleeping. At least, was supposed to be sleeping. Kai watched Cole and Zack sleeping soundly next to him on the sandy beach, cuddled with each other. Kai turned and looked up at the starry sky above them, and the bright reflection of it in the calm lake.

"You should be sleeping."

Kai jumped, turning to see Booker looking at him.

"I just can't," Kai muttered.

"Why not?" Booker asked him.

"With everything on my mind, I just can't think about sleep," Kai sighed. "Knowing that everything lies on our shoulders, and the team is practically gone."

Kai sighed, picking up a stick next to him and proceeding to draw lines in the sand with it.

"I just want this to be over," Kai sighed. "But the only easy way out of this would be to surrender, which would be us giving up. I just wouldn't be able to live with myself if we did that."

Kai hung his head in his arms, dropping the stick. He looked back up at the sky after a moment, biting his lip.

"Although it would mean we would all be together again, just not in the case we ever would want," he muttered.

There was a moment of silence between the two as Kai stared at the sky.

"What are you going to do, then?" Booker asked him.

"I don't know," Kai sighed. "That's the one issue I have, I don't know what to do anymore. One wrong move will lead to disaster and possibly death."

Booker heard Kai humming to himself softly, then he stopped.

"I know Cole wouldn't be with me on this, but I need to find Linda," Kai turned to Booker.

"Why?" Booker frowned.

"We need all the help we can get right now, and if she escaped the Overlord, we could use her help now more than ever," Kai said.

"You know that's asking for a deathwish," Cole muttered.

Kai turned, seeing Cole looking at him.  
"We don't know if she was helping him all along," Cole frowned.

"I know you're against her, but she's changed, Cole," Kai frowned at him. "You might not see it, but I do."

Kai turned and stormed into the forest. He walked in silence for several minutes, his thoughts swirling in his mind constantly. He stopped, looking up at the sky in silence. He looked down before him. (Never Surrender by Skillet)

" _Do you know what it's like when you're scared to see yourself?_ " Kai sang softly. " _Do you know what it's like when, you wish you were someone else? Who didn't need your help to get by? Do you know what it's like to wanna surrender?_ "

Kai kept walking deeper into the forest.  
" _I don't wanna feel like this tomorrow,_ " Kai sang, looking up at the sky as he walked. " _I don't wanna live like this today. Make me feel better, I wanna feel better. Stay with me here now and never surrender_."  
Kai sighed, looking around at his surroundings. Looking for anyone who was following him.  
" _Do you know what it's like when you're not who you wanna be?_ " Kai sang. " _Do you know what it's like to, be your own worst enemy? Who sees the things in me I can't hide? Do you know what it's like to wanna surrender?_ "

Kai clenched his hands together, almost surprised when bolts of lightning jumped to the trees around him.

" _I don't wanna feel like this tomorrow_ ," Kai sang out. " _I don't wanna live like this today. Make me feel better, I wanna feel better. Stay with me here now and never surrender_."

Kai felt the air around him cooling, and felt confused inside. All these powers inside him left him with no control over his own anymore.  
" _Make me feel better_."  
It made him feel helpless.

" _You make me feel better_."

He hated feeling helpless. Especially right now.

" _You make me feel better_."

When all he wanted was for everything to be normal again.

" _Put me back together_."

When they were all living happily in the Temple of Airjitzu.

" _I don't wanna feel like this tomorrow. I don't wanna live like this today. Make me feel better. I wanna feel better. Stay with me here now and never surrender._ "  
It made him upset and angry, and he just wanted to give up, yet he couldn't.

" _Put me back together_."

Not now. Not ever.

" _Never surrender_."

Not as long as Ninjago was in the hands of darkness.

" _Make me feel better. I need to feel better. Stay with me here now and never surrender_."

Not as long as the Overlord controlled his friends and family.  
"Maybe this will make you feel better." a voice called out.

Kai jumped, taking a fighting stance. He looked around, hoping to find the source of the voice.

"Who's there?" Kai cried out.

"Such a shame, I thought you would recognize me," the voice mused.

"Show yourself!" Kai shouted.

Kai yelped, looking down and seeing a sleep dart in his arm. He sway and fell to his knees. He watched his attacker come out of the shadows, grinning at him.

"No," he muttered.

"Goodnight, brother," she smirked at him. "See you on the other side."

Kai collapsed, allowing his world to go dark. The disbelief before with who he saw never left him, though.

* * *

Cole sighed, returning from the forest. Zack and Booker were both resting on the beach in silence, looking up at him as he emerged from the brush.

"Nothing," Cole sighed. "He's long gone."  
"Hopefully he's safe," Booker said. "We don't know who else might be here. Or if he left the safety boundaries and was found."

"You can do that?" Zack asked.

"Oh yes," Booker nodded. "Once you get out of range of the spell over the area, your open to tracking and being found."

"If he's found, they would think we're nearby, though," Cole cut in. "Then they would come looking for us, and we would all be found and there would be no stopping the Overlord from getting the golden powers."  
"That's not good," Zack muttered.

"We need to find Kai before anyone else does," Cole said, panicked.

Cole turned to run, but stopped when he found a katana pointed at his chest. He slowly backed away as Zack jumped to his feet and grabbed Booker. Cole backed away from the katana, looking up to see who was holding it.

"I would rather us just stay here."

Cole's heart skipped a beat as he panicked. He looked around, seeing more nindroids surrounding them. Jay was in front of him, holding the katana while Zane was behind them. Nindroids surrounded them from the sides and the sky, trapping them.

"Nya's done her job, now we have to do ours," Zane told Jay.

"Dart them," Jay nodded.

Cole suddenly felt a pinch his the back of his arm, and a wave of dizziness. He spun around as Zack collapsed to the ground. He looked back at Jay, his vision blurring around him. Jay smiled at him.

"Just relax, Cole," Jay smiled to him. "You'll be fine once this is all over."

And with that and a horrified look on his face, Cole collapsed to the ground unconscious.


	15. Chapter 15 - Lost Hope?

_**Quick heads up, I know that I'm technically on holidays (March Break! Yeah!) but I am going to be rather busy with family being out. This might be the last time you hear of me for a while, so I hope you enjoy this chapter!**_

Kai woke up, everything that had just happened to him flooding back to him. He quickly looked around, finding himself locked in a cell, his wrists chained to the wall behind him. He pulled on them, hoping to find a weak point and break free, even though he knew the chances of that were very slim to none. Kai sighed heavily, knowing he was trapped. He still had a chance if-

"Kai, are you awake?"

Cole was free. Which he wasn't.

"Yeah," Kai replied.

He didn't know how he had managed to miss Cole on his first glance of the room.

"It's over, isn't it," Kai sighed. "As if we even had a chance to begin with."

"Kai, come on, don't give up yet," Cole said. "We have to think. There must be a way out of here."

"You weren't the one that was captured and held here for months," Kai glared. "You weren't the one that was punished and tortured every time they tried to escape. You don't realize how heavily guarded this place is, Cole. And now our friends are pitted against us, and that will only make it harder for us to escape."

Cole looked away from Kai, knowing he was right. Maybe this would be the end for them and Ninjago as they knew it.

Both boys looked up as the door to the cell opened.

"Look who came to visit," the Overlord grinned, standing in the doorway. "The two remaining ninja."

"Like we had a chance," Cole spat.

"Oh, and it appears to be a day early," the Overlord sighed. "Such a shame that I'll have to wait another day for the Golden Powers."

Kai gulped as the Overlord walked towards him. He lifted Kai's chin with his hand, smirking at him.

"That won't stop all my other plans for you two, though," he taunted. "Like creating the powers in you."

"You won't get away with this," Cole glared.

"Who's going to stop me?" the Overlord turned to Cole, smirking. "Surely not either of you."

Cole went silent, glancing away from the Overlord.

"Little Lightning and Water will be down to fetch you when Ice is done with the preparations," the Overlord smirked. "Until I see you two again."

The Overlord turned and left the two in silence. The door closed as he walked away. Kai waited until he could hardly hear his footsteps before sinking to the floor in tears. He had his legs pulled up to his chest with his arms tightly around them, crying softly in a ball.

"Wow, you didn't last long," Cole muttered.

Kai went silent, remaining in the ball.

"You don't know what he put me through, Cole," Kai responded.

His voice was muffled, but Cole could hear the fear and pain behind it. He looked up, staring at the door.

"You don't know what he did to me, to Jay," Kai shook his head. "The nightmares that still haunt my dreams about everything he's done. Even Jay could hardly sleep with them, but he managed to."

"What are we going to do now?" Cole sighed.

"Better yet, what can we even do?" Kai turned to Cole.

Cole looked to Kai.

"Are we giving up?" Cole asked.

"No, we aren't," Kai replied. "But until we can see some sort of way to solve this, I think we might have to let evil win. Even if it's for a while."

"You might be right," Cole sighed. "Even though I hate to admit it, but giving into the Overlord might be our only option at the moment."

They both went silent, looking up at the door as footsteps echoed around them.

"This is going to be so exciting," Jay's voice echoed around them.

"I can't wait for this," Nya's replied. "And I will finally be with my brother again."

Kai and Cole looked at each other.

"Stay strong, Kai," Cole whispered. "For both of us."

Kai nodded. They both looked up as the door opened, Jay and Nya walking into the cell.

"Well, looks like you're coming with us," Jay smiled.

Kai watched as Nya unchained him and held his arm tightly. When he looked over to Cole, he was cuff by Jay, who nodded to Nya. Kai let his sister lead him out of the cell, hearing Cole and Jay following them. After several minutes of silence, they arrived in another room where they found the Overlord and Zane waiting for them.

"You know where to put them," Zane nodded.

Kai glanced at Cole as he was brought into the chamber he was locked in once before. He was pushed into the chamber and turned around as it was locked shut. He watched Cole from across the room being strapped down. Jay turned away from the earth ninja and walked towards Zane.

"Are the holding Chambers ready?" Jay asked.

"Affirmative," Zane nodded. "Everything is ready."

Cole and Kai looked at each other, waiting for them to start. They turned to looked at Zane who was at the controls. He smiled, hand on the lever as they looked at him. He pull the lever, and the process started. Kai turned back to Cole, seeing the earth ninja struggling and growing weak as his powers were stolen from him. Kai watched as the energy swirled around him in the chamber. He watched as the other three elements he had started flowing from him, swirling around and mixing together. He looked up to see everyone else watching with amazement, even Cole. He watched the four elements swirl into one golden ray, and flow into him.

"The golden powers," the Overlord grinned.

Kai looked up as Cole was unstrapped from his chair and pulled to his feet. Kai turned back to his sister when she opened the door. The Overlord reached in a grabbed his arm, pulling him out. Kai stumbled, keeping his head down to avoid eye contact with anyone.

"What are we doing with him?" Zane asked.

Kai looked up quickly, seeing he was referring to Cole.

"Bring him with us," the Overlord replied. "We'll contain him until everything is ready to continue with him."

Cole gulped, feeling Zane pulling him away. They walked into the elevator and Zane forced him into the corner. Cole turned around to look at Zane seconds before Kai ran into him.

"You OK?" Cole whispered to him.

"I've been better," Kai muttered back.

Nya and Jay walked in with Zane, and left the Overlord in the main room. The elevator started moving down, and Kai turned back to Cole.

"What's going to happen now?" Cole asked him.

"We're just getting locked up again," Kai sighed. "At least this way is more comfortable than a cell."

The elevator stopped and the door flew open. Zane walked out while Jay and Nya grabbed Kai and Cole. Kai and Cole were lead into the room, where they saw the beds with glass covers over them. Cole glanced at Kai, terrified. To Cole, Kai seemed calm about everything going on. Then Cole realized this had probably happened to him once before. If he wasn't panicked, they should be fine for the time being.

"Kai, you should know what to do," Zane said.

Zane opened the cover of one of the beds. Nya released her brother, handing him over to Zane before turning to Cole and Jay, taking them to the one next to Kai. Cole watched her open the cover before turning to Cole. She motioned to the bed.

"Just lie down, Cole."

Cole quickly turned to his right, seeing Zane strapping Kai down on the bed. Cole felt a small shove behind him, and landed on the bed. Jay rolled him onto his back and held him down. Cole didn't struggle against Jay, allowing Nya to strap him down. Instead, Cole turned and watched as Zane locked Kai in the chamber. Kai was silent, but watching Cole. Cole looked away from Kai was Jay placed an oxygen mask over his face. He closed the chamber, locking Cole inside.

"Alright, we're all good here," Nya turned to Zane.

"Then we go report to Master," Zane nodded. "You two stay put."

Cole and Kai watched the others leave. Cole waited for them to be in the elevator before speaking.

"What now?" he asked Kai.

"What do you want to do?" Kai turned to him. "We have a while before anyone comes back."

"So we're just going to sit here?" Cole questioned.

"Just trust me, we'll be out of here sooner than you realize," Kai smirked.

"What aren't you telling me?" Cole frowned.

"You'll see," Kai smiled, turning away. "You'll see."

 _ **:D**_


	16. Chapter 16 - What's Going On?

_**I apologize for the lack of uploads over the week, and that this will be the only one for a while. I've just been really busy and had a hard time deciding what I wanted to do next. Now that I know, hopefully there will be an upload again within the next couple of days. Enjoy this chapter though!**_

Zack was silent, scared and terrified in the small cell he was left in. There was no one with him when he woke up, and he hadn't seen anyone come to check on him. He didn't know how long he had been there, or even where he was. He was just alone. He had given up hope that someone was coming for him and eventually started drifting off into sleep.

"He's got to be around here somewhere!"

His eyes snapped open, looking towards the door. Seconds later, June ran into his view with Tylor beside her.  
"He's down here! Linda, this way!" June shouted.

Zack listened as Linda, Stan, Nicki and Roy all came into his view. Linda pulled open the door, allowing Nicki and Roy to run to the young boy.

"Nicki! Roy!" Zack cried.

"Oh, thank the first spinjitzu master your Ok," Nicki hugged the young boy.

"We were worried sick about you," Roy added.

"How did you survive that fall?" Nicki asked.

"Dash protected him," Linda cut in.

She had a key in her hand and proceed to take the chains off of Zack.

"What do you mean?" Roy asked.

"I was teleported away from here," Zack told them. "I went to Kai and Cole, and they protected me."

"That means they must be here too," Tylor frowned.

"Also meaning we don't have much time left to find them," Stan added.

"We need to find my sister first," Linda said. "With Lloyd not an option, she is the only one that might be able to teach Kai how to control the Golden powers."  
"We still need to get to Kai and Cole," Nicki cut in.

Linda bit her lip, looking between the group.

"Alright, we'll split up," Linda nodded. " Tylor, Stan, and June, go and find Kai and Cole. You guys know the meeting point, so you get out of here as soon as you can."

Tylor and Stan nodded, turning to run off. Roy gave Nicki a quick kiss on the cheek before running off with them.

"Roy, Nicki and Zack, come with me this way," Linda nodded.

Nicki took Zack by the hand, leading them around the dungeon to find Ali.

* * *

Not wanting to risk being caught in the elevator, Stan, June and Tylor used the stealthiest way they could think of to find Kai and Cole. Climbing the wall outside. They jumped from window to window, looking inside for any signs of Cole or Kai, and avoiding being seen by anyone else inside. When they were about ten stories up, June caught sight of something that Tylor and Stan didn't notice.

"Guys, come see this," June called up to them.

Tylor and Stan climbed down, looking at June confused. June pointed inside, and they caught a glimpse of red from inside one of the chambers.

"Do you think they're in there?" Tylor frowned.

"Only one way to find out," Stan grinned.

He pulled out a small dagger from his pocket and cut a circle in the window. They all silently slipped inside, walking towards the chambers. June suspicions were correct, as they found Kai in one, and Cole in another.

"Let's get them out of here and to the meeting point before anyone else shows up," June ordered, her voice in a whisper.

Tylor and Stan nodded, working on opening the chambers. Stan was quickly typing in a code to open the chambers, not having a key to open it. As he was doing this, he glanced up and made contact with two chocolate brown eyes.

"June, Cole's awake," Stan called out.

June slipped from watching for anyone to come in to checking on Cole. She was at Stan's side by the time he had the chamber open, and pulled the oxygen mask off him.

"Are you alright?" June asked him.

"Yeah," Cole nodded.

"We're getting you and Kai out of here," June smiled at him. "Just hold on."

Cole nodded. June turned, letting Stan unstrap Cole. She glanced at Tylor, who was working with Kai. Tylor was unstrapping the red ninja, who was rather silent. They June noticed he was still asleep.

"Is he not waking up?" June asked Tylor.

"No, I don't know why," Tylor sighed.

"Ali or Linda should be able to wake him once we're safe if he hasn't woken up himself," June sighed.

Tylor nodded.

"But how do we get him out of here?" Tylor asked.

June frowned, looking around. She knew they would have to carry him, but they would also being climbing several stories down the side of a building. Then June spotted some rope and a harness near the elevator. She ran over, grabbing it.

"We'll lower him with this," June held it up.

Stan helped Cole to his feet, both of them looking at June.

"Cole, will you be able to climb down on your own?" June asked.

"Yeah, probably," Cole nodded.

"Well, we should have someone going down with Kai to make sure he doesn't collide with the wall and get hurt," Tylor cut in.

"I can do that," Cole said. "I'll just climb down beside the rope."

"Alright, we'll get them set up," June told Stan. "Can you start down to meet them at the bottom?"

"Got it," Stan nodded, running to the window.

June brought the rope over to Tylor, who had left Kai unrestrained on the bed. The more she thought about the plan, the more she worried about something going wrong.

"You know what, change of plans," June sighed. "Cole, can you carry Kai down?"

"How do you expect me to do that?" Cole frowned.

"We'll put the harness on you, and help you down," June said.  
"Alright, I guess we can do that," Cole sighed.

June helped Cole get the harness on, making sure it fit him snuggly. Cole realized why she changed plans, because the harness would have been too big for Kai. The harness was at its smallest size, and it was just small enough to fit him. Taking that into note, Kai was smaller than Cole, seeing the earth was taller and a bit more muscular than the fire ninja was.

Once Cole had the harness on, he picked up Kai, holding onto him. They all walked over to the window, looking out to see Stan near the ground. Tylor held the rope as June helped Cole get himself and Kai out the small opening in the window.

"Alright, just keep Kai close to you, Cole," June told him. "We'll have both of you down in a couple minutes, and then meet you down there after that."

"Alright," Cole nodded.

Cole was facing upwards, his back to the ground as his feet bounced him down the wall with the harness. Kai was still unconscious against him. Cole had his arms around the red ninja to hold him against his chest. He looked up, then looked below him seeing Stan only about fifteen feet below him. He looked to Kai as he descended the final couple feet to the ground. Once he felt his feet on the ground, he let Stan take Kai from him. He tugged on the rope, telling June and Tylor he was down.

"Come on, we're out in the open," Stan told him.

"What about June and Tylor?" Cole asked.

"We'll wait for them over here," Stan replied.

Cole took the harness off, then followed Stan to a small abandoned corner store. Once inside, Stan laid Kai across a countertop before turning to watch for June and Tylor to get down.

"Where are we going after this?" Cole asked. "We need somewhere safe to hide that the others won't find us at."  
"Linda has that covered," Stan told him.

Cole turned to Kai, walking over to him. He remembered seeing Kai with hope in his eyes, and now he wouldn't even move. Cole was worried the Overlord did something to him that Cole was unaware of. Something that might have been hurting him, or even killing him at that very moment. And all he could do was watch and wait.


	17. Chapter 17 - In and Out of Chaos

After meeting up with Linda, Ali, Nicki, Roy and Zack, the group trekked south, leaving the city and heading towards Hiroshi's Labyrinth. Cole carried the limp Kai in his arms, walking with Tylor on his left and Stan on his right. Nicki, Roy and Zack trailed behind him, June bringing up the rear. Linda and Ali spoke softly between each other, casting worried glances back at Kai and Cole every once and awhile. Cole glanced down at Kai in his arms, feeling like the fire ninja's condition was partially his fault. He couldn't help but feel like he could have done something, anything, differently to have saved him from his condition.

"You couldn't do anything any differently than you did," Ali turned to Cole.

Cole frowned, the remembered she could read his mind.

"Thinking about how all this could have turned out, and seeing where you were before this, this is possibly the best outcome of all the outcomes," she continued. "We'll save him, we just need time and a safe distance between us and the enemy."

"June, is this the place?" Linda asked.

"It is, yes," June nodded, making her way to the front of the group.

Cole frowned, then looked up. High above them, in the leafy canopy of the labyrinth, he could make out a cleverly camouflaged treehouse.

"Stan, Tylor, could you two come up with me and help get the stretcher lowered for Kai?" June asked.

The two boys nodded, following June towards a rope ladder hanging from the tree.

"I'm going to go up too," Linda said softly to her sister. "I'll start preparing everything for when Kai gets up. Can you help watch down here?"

"Of course," Ali nodded.

Cole watched Linda turn and follow June, Tylor and Stan up the ladder. His gaze averted from Linda to Ali as she approached him.

"Let's set him down so I can get a better look at him," Ali told Cole.

With her help, Cole was able to gently set Kai on the forest floor, allowing Ali to study his condition.

"Any idea what happened to him?" Ali asked Cole.

"All I know is that he now has the Golden Powers in him," Cole sighed. "I dozed off for a little while before the others found us, so something else could have happened to him while I was out."

Ali sighed, looking Kai up and down. She reached for the belt around the waist of his gi, and started untying it.

"Can we trust your sister?" Cole asked.

Ali paused, looking up at Cole. She bit her lip, trying to find an answer. Her eyes glanced down at Kai again.

"Did he trust her?" Ali asked, looking at Kai.

"Yeah, he did," Cole sighed. "I didn't want to believe she had changed, but she's been helping us against the Overlord for a while."

"Then I say we trust her," Ali nodded. "She might have been against us, but people can change."

Cole nodded, knowing that was true. He looked up, seeing Stan and Tylor jumping down from the stretcher. Ali glanced over her shoulder as Cole lifted Kai up. They walked over to stretcher as Ali got Zack, Nicki and Roy started up the ladder. Cole set Kai on the stretcher, helping Tylor strap him down to it.

"You stay there," Stan told him. "Jump ride up with him. I'll climb."

Cole nodded, taking hold of the cords holding the stretcher.

"Lift away!" Tylor shouted.

Cole nearly fell backwards as the stretcher started upwards. He held on as they ascended towards the treehouse above them. Cole looked down at Kai, only to see the red ninja's amber eyes slowly peek open at him.

"He's awake," Cole sighed with relief.

"Where are we?" Kai muttered.

"Just hold on, Firecracker," Tylor told him.

Kai looked around as the reached the treehouse. June pulled back a lever to stop the gears from turning and stop the stretcher from rising. Stan and Linda pulled the stretcher over and onto the floor, allowing Cole to step off. When Cole stepped away, Kai seemed to go into a panic attack.

"Kai, you need to calm down!" Linda cried. "You are going to hurt yourself."

Cole pushed himself next to Linda, hearing Kai hyperventilating. Cole took Kai's hand, and immediately felt a tight, almost bone breaking squeeze on it.

"Cole, you need to backup," Ali said, running over to them.

"I can't," Cole responded. "He won't let go of me."

"Kai, let go of him," Linda cried out. "For goodness sake, we're trying to help you."

Cole then realized Kai was staring at him. Cole looked at Kai, and saw that he was terrified.

"I'm not leaving, Kai," Cole whispered. "I'm going to be right here with you. We just need to move you somewhere more comfortable. Ok?"

Kai's breathing slowly returned to normal as his grasp released Cole. Immediately after, Tylor and Stan were carrying Kai over to a small bed with multiple tables around it. They carefully moved Kai onto it, then backed away to allow Cole to move next to Kai. Cole was startled when Kai's first move was to grab Cole's hand and hold him tightly.

"He's awake now," Ali sighed.

"Why weren't you waking up, Kai?" Linda asked, worried. "No one could wake you."

"I don't know," Kai muttered.

Ali pulled Kai's top off, looking at him. As she was examining his arm, she spotted something that worried her.

"Linda, look at this," she told her sister.

Linda moved to Ali's side, and looked at what she had found. Linda looked up at Ali.

"Was he?" Linda muttered.

"June, we might have a major issue on our hands," Ali called out. "We'll need all hands on deck. Roy, keep Nicki and Zack away from us and out of the way."  
"What's going on?" Cole asked.

"Kai's been injected with something," Ali answered. "Until we know what that something is, we won't know what type of danger Kai might be in."

Cole glanced down at Kai, seeing how frightened he was.

"Cole, I need you to come and mix this," June called out.

"I'll be right here, Ok?" Cole whispered to Kai. "Everything is going to be Ok."  
Kai nodded, allowing Cole to free his hand and run to June's side. She passed him a small bowl and he began stirring the contents without a question. June was working on a bunch of other things while Tylor flipped through a book. Cole turned as June took the bowl from him, added a couple things, and told him to keep mixing it. He did just that, but turned to glance at Kai. His eyes were furrowed shut, clearly in pain as Ali pulled a syringe from his arm. She capped it and handed it to her sister, who started a test with it.

"Cole, I need the bowl back," June said, taking the bowl from him again.

"Cole, come over here," Ali called out.

Cole ran over to Ali's side, seeing her watching Kai. Cole turned to look at Kai, and saw he was out cold. Again.


	18. Chapter 18 - Life and Death

_**I just want to say, Dasher girl, you are on the right track with something, but just the wrong person. Don't get mad at me. Enjoy this chapter!**_

Everyone acted really quickly to Kai's loss of conscious. Within minutes, they had a heart rate monitor on him, an oxygen mask, and an IV in his arm. Cole stared at Kai, worried for his teammate. The two of them were the only ninja that remained to try and stop not only the Overlord, but rescue the rest of their team from his grasp. To Cole, he was too worried about anything to notice anything off about himself.

"Cole, I need to know something," Ali said, snapping the earth ninja from his thoughts.

Cole turned to Ali, seeing her worried.

"Do you feel anything? Like headache, soreness, anything like that?" Ali asked him.

"Now that you mention it, I do feel a bit light headed," Cole muttered.

Ali turned, looking at her sister. Linda looked up from Kai after Cole's answer.

"Could easily be dehydration," Linda shrugged. "But there is the chance that it's something else."  
"Cole, is it alright with you if we examine you too, just to be safe?" Ali asked him.

"I guess," Cole shrugged.

All he knew is that he didn't want to end up in Kai's position. Ali took Cole to the bed next to Kai's, allowing Cole to sit on it. Of course, Cole figured Ali would be looking for some sort of spot where something was injected into him like in Kai, so he pulled his top off.

"Hopefully it's like Linda said and it's only-" Ali cut herself off with an irritated sigh.

"What?" Cole asked.

"Cole, I need you to just hold on for me," Ali whispered.

She turned to the rest of the group, saying double hit on Cole. Cole looked down at his arm, confused until he saw two different injection sites. His heart skipped a beat as he looked up at Ali.

"Just keep calm, we're going to handle this," Ali told him.

Cole nodded as June came to his side.

"If he was given a double dosage, it could be having a different effect on him," June said.

"Also remember Kai is weakened because of the Golden Powers, so it would have been easier to give him a smaller dose and get away with it," Linda added.

"Right, that might do it," Ali muttered. "We might not have much time, we have to get to work now."

"What's going to happen?" Cole asked, worried.

"I cannot say for certain, Cole," Ali replied. "We'll have to wait and see, but if we don't do anything now, it won't be good."  
Cole gulped, feeling someone drawing blood from him. He watched everyone working around him, seeing how they were worried about him. Then Cole heard Ali and Linda talking quietly.

"It's the same thing in both of them," Linda muttered. "It's just reacting differently in Kai."

"What is it doing differently then?" Ali asked.

"I don't know entirely," Linda sighed. "It's most likely the different dosages causing different effects. The extra cells from the serum is spreading evenly in Kai, but grouping together in Cole. It's so bizarre."

"But could it possibly be building itself up against Cole, then attack him?" Ali asked.

"It's quite possible," Linda muttered. "And if it does happen, we might only have minutes to react before we lose him."

Cole gulped at that statement. Then his attention turned to June.

"I want you to lie down for me, Ok," June said.

Cole listened, slowly lying back on the bed. He turned over as Ali quickly dashed from Linda's side to him, seeming terrified. She was calling things out, then turning to watch Cole carefully.

"What's going on?" Cole asked, frightened.

"I just need you to breath, OK Cole," Ali said. "Just keep breathing."

Cole nodded, still unsure of what was happening to him. He felt fine, but apparently something bad was about to happen to him. What that was, he wasn't sure.

"Alright, IV is started with the healing remedy I gave Kai," June said. "Let's just hope it works before it's too late.

That's when everything struck Cole. Hard.

* * *

Nicki and Roy were on the upper floor of the treehouse, keeping Zack distracted and out of the way of everything going on. Zack had found a comic book and was reading it to himself while Nicki and Roy watched for any nindroids, which they doubted there would be any near them at that moment.

"Do you think Kai will be alright?" Nicki asked Roy quietly.

"The others will do everything to help him recover from whatever this is," Roy answered. "He should be fine. It's Cole I'm worried about."

"Why are you worried about him?" Nicki asked. "He seemed fine before."  
Roy shook his head, understanding that Nicki wouldn't quite understand his thoughts right away.

"Cole was trapped like Kai was," Roy explained. "It's rather likely that they've done something to him too. And it could be much worse that anything that they did to Kai. Especially seeing that the Overlord wants Kai alive, but Cole would be exposable now."

Nicki nodded, flinching. If Cole would be exposable, the Overlord could easily have killed him. Or be killing him without anyone knowing.

"Hopefully the others clue into that before it's too late for-" Roy started.

A scream echoed around them, causing them to all jump. Zack was quick to his feet, wanting to know what was happening.

"What's going on?" Zack asked.

"It's being taken care of, Zack," Roy quickly replied. "We don't need to worry about it."

"Are you sure?" Zack asked, looking between Nicki and Roy.

"Positive," Nicki nodded.

Zack shrugged, going back to the comic book.

"At least, I hope," Roy muttered to Nicki.

Nicki nodded, turning away from Zack and looking around the forest. Hopefully the others would be able to save them and they were about to lose the only two remaining ninja.

* * *

Kai woke up, his heart pounding after he heard a loud, ear splitting scream. He frantically looked around as Tylor moved to his side.

"Breath, Kai. Breath," he said. "Calm down."

Kai managed to relax and slow his breathing as he looked around. He then noticed everyone gathered around another bed, which had someone on it. He looked up at Tylor, seeing him casting glances over at the other bed. Then Linda ran over to him.

"Kai, are you Ok?" she asked.

"Yeah, I feel fine," Kai nodded. "Why? What's happening?"

Linda didn't respond. But Ali's cries answered that for him.

"Cole, you need to wake up!" Ali cried. "Cole, come on. Wake up!"  
As soon as Linda pulled the IV from Kai's arm, He was to his feet and running to Cole's side. He looked terrified as Cole was struggling to breath and his heart rate dropped rapidly.

"We're losing him!" June called out.

At that moment, it was like everything slowed down for Kai. He watched Cole's chest slowly rise and fall, shaking as it did so. He was pale and sweating while his heart rate continued to drop and slow. Then, everything stopped. His chest stopped rising, he stopped breathing. And worst of all. The heart monitor went flat.


	19. Chapter 19 - Light in the Darkness

Kai flipped over Ali, then spun around and hit her with a blast of golden energy. Ali slid backwards on her knees, then looked up at Kai. He stood his ground, a serious look on his face. Ali summoned a dark aura and launched it at Kai, only for him to create a shield around him and block the blast. He send the shield out in a sonic blast, sending Ali toppling head over heels into the base of the treehouse. She moaned, looking up at Kai.

"Too much?" he asked, flinching.

"No, that was a job well done," Ali moaned.

She pushed herself up, shaking the dust off of her from rolling on the ground. She walked up to Kai.

"In the hour or so that we have been working, you've learned so much," Ali complimented. "Great job."

Kai nodded, a small yet forced smile on his face. Ali let out a sigh, knowing he would still be thinking about him.

"He would want you to keep fighting, and get everyone back for him," Ali whispered.

"I know," Kai sighed. "I just wish he would be here with me to see everyone back to themselves."

Ali and Kai walked together and sat at the base of the treehouse. Kai sighed, still remembering the moments leading to the loss of life. (Song: Not Gonna Die by Skillet)

" _Death surrounds, my heart beat's slowing down_ ," Kai sang. " _I won't take this world's abuse. I won't give up or refuse_."

He looked over to see Ali nodding, listening.

" _This is how it feels when you're bent and broken_ ," he continued. " _This is how it feels when your dignity's stolen. When everything you love is leaving, you hold on to what you believe in_."

Ali slowly stood up, looking at the sky.

" _The last thing I heard was you whispering goodbye_ ," she sang softly. " _And then I heard you flatline_."

" _No, not gonna die tonight_ ," they sang together. " _We've gotta stand and fight forever._ "

" _Don't close your eyes!_ " Ali sang out.

" _No, not gonna die tonight. We've gotta fight for us together_ ," they sang. " _No, we're not gonna die tonight_."

Ali pulled Kai to his feet as they started running deeper into the Labyrinth.

" _Break their hold, cause I won't be controlled,_ " Kai sang, his eyes glowing with energy. " _They can't keep their chains on me when the truth has set me free. This is how it feels when you take your life back. This is how it feels when you finally fight back. When life pushes me I push harder. What doesn't kill me makes me stronger_."

Ali stopped, turning to Kai and taking his hands.

" _The last thing I heard is you whispering goodbye_ ," she sang. " _And then I heard you flatline_."

Kai spun around as they started sparring again.

"No, not gonna die tonight. We've gotta stand and fight forever," they sang together.

" _Don't close your eyes!_ " Ali sang loud.

" _No, not gonna die tonight. We've gotta fight for us together_ ," they sang together. " _No, we're not gonna die tonight_."

Kai flipped over Ali as she charged at him.

" _Don't you give up on me!_ ' Kai sang out.

Ali spun around and launched a kick at him. He jumped over it, landing in a fighting stance.

" _You're everything I need_ ," Ali echoed Kai.

Ali threw a couple punches at Kai, who blocked them all.

" _This is how it feels when you take your life back!_ " Kai sang out.

" _This is how it feels when you fight back!_ " Ali shouted.

Kai launched multiple punches at Ali, causing her to step back from him with each swing. Then Kai ran at her. She jumped out of the way, allowing Kai to kick his feet up, then push off against the base of a tree. He flew and kicked of another tree, and another, and another. Ali spun in circles, watching Kai jumping around her. With one last kick, Kai landed and broke out into spinjitzu. Although it started red, his tornado turned golden as he spun around. He stopped spinning, emanating a golden colour with a golden gi replacing his red one and his amber eyes sparkling with flecks of gold. The grin on his face was irreplaceable.

" _No, not gonna die tonight. We've gotta stand and fight forever_ ," Kai sang out.

" _Don't close your eyes_ ," Ali grinned.

" _No, not gonna die tonight. We've gotta fight for us together_ ," they sang together. " _No, we're not gonna die tonight!_ "

They walked towards each other, grinning.

" _No, we're not gonna die tonight_ ," Kai sang. " _Not gonna die_."

" _Not gonna die_ ," Ali echoed.

" _Not gonna die_ ," Kai sang

" _Not gonna die_ ," Ali echoed.

" _Not gonna die tonight_ ," they sang together.

There was a silence between them as Kai looked at himself in awe.

"Did I?" Kai asked.

"You've unlocked a Golden Master state," Ali smiled. "The only other person who has ever managed to do that with the Golden Powers was Lloyd and the First Spinjitzu Master. It's incredible."  
"Kai! Ali! We need you back at base!" June's voice echoed around them.

"We're on our way!" Ali shouted out.

Kai turned and followed Ali back towards the treehouse. They climbed the ladder, and reached the area everyone was waiting at. Everyone froze, conversations stopping as their eyes laid on Kai.

"The Golden Powers, he's-" Linda gasped.

"It's amazing," June muttered.

"He's the strongest in the world," Tylor grinned.

"We might actually stand a chance now," Stan cheered.

Kai looked down as Zack pulled on his arm. Zack looked at him in awe.

"Hey buddy," Kai grinned.

Zack laughed as Kai picked Zack up and spun him around. Everyone was happy, but things were about the get worse.

"What's our next move?" June cut in.

"We need to stop the Overlord and free Lloyd, and everyone from his grasp," Ali said.  
"How do we know Lloyd is even alive in there?" Tylor asked.

"He needs to be alive, otherwise the Overlord couldn't be controlling his body," Kai said. "The only way the Overlord can exist without a host, is with the Golden Powers."

"Which you now control," Stan added.

"So, what do we do now?" June asked.

"We head for the city," Kai grinned.

"But do we want to draw all the droids attention before we even reach the Overlord?" Stan asked.

"We won't," Kai grinned. "They won't know we're coming."

"What do you mean by that?" Ali asked him.

"Just trust me," Kai grinned. "Zack, I'll need a little dragon help."

"Got'cha," Zack nodded, grinning.  
"What are we doing?" Linda asked.

"You are staying here until Zack and I get back," Kai ordered.  
"Whoa, you are going into the City, with Zack as your only help?" Ali cried out. "Are you insane?"  
"We aren't going into the city," Kai shook his head. "You'll understand what we're doing when we get back. Just trust me."

Zack transformed into his dragon form. He allowed Kai to climb on his back before jumping off the edge of the Treehouse and into the air.

"You're going to get yourselves killed!" Linda shouted.

Kai ignored them, knowing they couldn't be followed. As he and Zack emerged out of the trees and into the dark sky or the evening, Zack spoke.

"Where to?" he asked Kai.

"Take us to Stixs, Zack," Kai replied.

Zack nodded, turning and heading south. The spark in Kai's eyes glinted with confidence. He knew this was going to work, he just had to play hs cards correctly.

* * *

The Overlord was frustrated with the escape of the fire and earth ninjas. He had sent each of his captured and controlled ninja to the different areas they could be hiding. He knew eventually the Fire ninja would be caught and returned to him with the Golden Powers.

"Master, the prisoners have escaped too," a droids ran in.

"Tell Lightning, Ice and Water to hunt for them too then," the Overlord ordered.

"Yes sir," the droid nodded, running from the room.

The Overlord growled. If the Princess was with the master of Fire, she could teach him to control the Golden Powers and stop him.

 _They will stop you!_

He moaned, the Green Ninja's voice echoing in his head yet again.

"As soon as the Golden Power is mine, you'll be the next to be turned," the Overlord threatened.

 _Like it ever will be yours,_ Lloyd taunted.

The Overlord ignored the green ninja, turning to check on the status of the others. Lightning was still on his way to Jamanikai Village. Water had made it to their old base and claimed it to still be empty. Now she was on her way to check the Samurai X Cave. Ice was still patrolling Stixs, checking to see if it was clear. If everything went to plan, the Overlord would have them all back by dawn and the Golden Powers would be his.

 _ **So, does anyone have any guesses to what Kai's plan is now?**_


	20. Chapter 20 - Truth Behind Freedom

Zack landed near the edge of Stixs, allowing Kai to slip off him before transforming back into his human form. Kai pulled a black hood and sweat pants from his backpack, seeing Zack looking around. He pulled the sweater and pants on over his gi.

"Isn't it a bit warm for that?" Zack asked.

"It's not to keep me warm," Kai replied, adjusting the sweater to hide his gi. "I can't run around wearing the golden gi without getting hundreds of nindroids on our tail instantly."

"Point taken," Zack said.

Kai started down a trail into the city on the water. Zack followed close behind, looking around. They had flown from Hiroshi's Labyrinth and Kai explained the plan to him before they landed. Now Zack knew what their goal was here, and what his plan was. Mostly.

"Zack, into the shadows," Kai whispered.

Zack followed Kai, running into a shadowed alleyway. Zack huddled against Kai as a group of droids ran past.

"We're close," Kai whispered.

"But Zane has an army of droids with him," Zack pointed out. "How do you expect us to get close to him?"

"I was counting on the droids to help with that, actually," Kai told Zack. "But I need to know you trust me."

"Of course I do," Zack replied.

"Alright, then follow my lead," Kai nodded. They stayed out of sight in the alleyway. Kai listened to the people whispering as they walked past him and Zack. He watched as they went silent, and the sounds of droids could be heard around them.

"Follow me," Kai told Zack. "Stay close."

Zack nodded. A second later, Kai dashed from the alleyway, Zack trailing closely behind him as they ran in front of the now startled droids.

"Ninja!" one of the droids finally shouted.

Kai and Zack could hear the metal footsteps pounding behind them as they ran. Kai took Zack by the hand and pulled him around the corner. They pushed through a crowd of frightened people, deeper into the city. People ran out of the way as the droids pushed the slower ones to the ground. Kai glanced over his shoulder, before tripping and falling to the ground. Zack yelped, looking around as an army of droids surrounded them.

"Look who came straight to me."

Kai pushed himself up onto his knees, looking up. A glare was on his face as Zane smirked at him.

"Where are your other little friends?" Zane taunted.

"Nowhere near you," Kai snapped.

Kai climbed to his feet, only for Zane to push him down. Kai laid on his stomach, feeling Zane place a foot on his back. There was no pressure against him, and he could easily get up and fight. He just wanted to go along with the plan. Kai watched Zane grab Zack by the collar, pulling him close to him. Zane winked at Zack, reassuring him. Zack still looked terrified.

"The others must not be far," Zane called out. "Search for them and find them."  
The droids separated, running off in different directions. Once the last one was out of their sight, Zane released Zack and helped Kai to his feet.

"I didn't hurt you, did I?" Zane asked.

"I'm perfectly fine," Kai smiled.

The two pulled each other close, hugging and patting each other on the back.

"Good to have you back," Kai smiled.

"Good to be back," Zane smiled.

"That was all an act?" Zack cried out.

"Not all of it, child," Zane smiled. "I'll explain once we're a safe distance from here."

Zack nodded. Zane stood up, looking around.

"This way," he said.

Zane motioned for Kai and Zack to follow him. They turned and ran through the city, making turns and somehow avoiding any and all the droids in the area. Once they reached the end of the city, Zack sat against a rock sticking out of the ground.

"Can someone explain what just happened now?" Zack asked.

"I'll do the honors, Kai," Zane nodded.

"Be my guest," Kai replied, sitting on the ground across from Zack.

"Now, this might be a lot to take in all of a sudden, so I can repeat myself," Zane told him.

"How did you break free?" Zack blurted out.

"The Overlord simply downloaded a virus into my system," Zane explained. "It allowed him to take control over me, and use me. He shut down most of my anti-virus scanners, but I had a backup hidden with a decoy. It just works a little slower."

"So you cleared to virus from you system?" Zack asked.

"And now I'm normal Zane again," Zane smiled.

"All except for the powers," Kai cut in. "Which I kind of have."

"It's alright, brother," Zane turned to Kai. "You couldn't stop it from happening. You had no choice."

Zane looked around, slightly confused.

"If my memory serves me correct, you had said it would be you, Zack and Cole coming to meet me here," Zane said. "Where is Cole?"

Kai choked back a sob, blinking away his tears at the mention of the name.

"Oh no," Zane muttered

He turned, seeing Zack was on the verge of crying too. Zane instantly realized something was really wrong.

"He's gone, Zane," Kai muttered.

"What happened to him?" Zane asked.

Kai bit his lip, wiping away the few tears that had managed to escape his eyes. He could see the worry in Zane's eyes, and the curiosity for how their brother was hurt.

"The Overlord poisoned him, or something," Kai explained. "I don't know. All I know is that it stopped his heart, and killed him."

Zane sighed, slowly standing up. Kai looked up, seeing the guilt on Zane's metal face. His eyes jumped around, and then he looked out at the horizon. Kai frowned, looking up at Zane. Kai slowly pushed himself to his feet, watching Zane look down.

"What are you not saying?" Kai asked.

"It's nothing," Zane replied.

"Don't lie to me, Zane," Kai said. "Whatever it is, you need to tell me."

Zane stayed silent.

"If it was you, I'm not ma-" Kai started.  
"That's not it," Zane spun to face Kai. "It's not me, I didn't do it!"

"Why are you being so defensive?" Kai asked.  
"Because I don't know how we'll tell the person who did do it," Zane answered.

Zane stepped away from Kai, turning his back on his brother. Zack stood up, watching the scene unfolding before him. Kai blinked, momentarily confused.

"What are you talking about?" Kai asked.

"I'll tell you this," Zane said, looking over his shoulder. "I didn't give anyone anything, and Nya gave it to you."

Kai went through a process of elimination. If Zane didn't give anyone the serum, and his sister gave him his. It left one option.

"No, you can't be serious," Kai gasped.

"Now you see my reason for my actions," Zane sighed.

"What do we do?" Kai asked.

"I don't know," Zane sighed.

He turned, facing Kai again.

"If we tell him, he'll be heartbroken," Zane added.

"Anyone would be heartbroken if they were told they killed their best friend," Kai added.

"We don't tell him," Zack said.

Kai and Zane turned to the little boy, looking at them.

"We won't tell him, at least, not until this is all blown over," Zack added. "That way, he'll have his strength, his motivation, and his courage to fight against the Overlord."

"I think the kids right," Kai sighed. "It's our only option."

"Alright," Zane sighed. "We won't tell him."

Jay will never know the truth.


	21. Chapter 21 - Running out of Time

It wasn't long before they were back in the air and on their way to find Nya. Zane gave directions while Kai rod on Zack, behind Zane. Kai looked around, tracking where they were so if they needed to, they could go for cover at the nearest place possible. He could see a forest just to their left, almost directly below them. Kai was back in the golden gi, his dark clothing hidden away in his bag yet again. Zane watched below them, then looked up.

"She sees us," Zane said. "Zack, drop us down."

Zack nodded his head before tilting to the right and circling down towards the ground. Zack transformed as he landed, with Kai and Zane behind him. Kai kept his head down, not willing to look at his sister in her current condition.

"You found him?" Nya asked.

"More like he found me," Zane replied. "Came running right to me."

Nya frowned, looking at her brother.

"Something about this doesn't seem right," Nya muttered.

Kai glanced away. Nya turned and walked up to Zane, almost as if she were examining him. Within seconds, Zane had Nya's arms pulled behind her. She screamed, and thrashed around in his grasp.

"What did he do to you!" Nya shouted at Zane. "Why have you turn on us?"  
"I'm sorry, sis," Kai muttered.

Zane watched Kai form a sphere of Golden energy in his hands. He looked up at his sister.

"This is going to hurt you a lot more than it's going to hurt me," Kai said.

With a quick sharp nod, Kai shot the energy at his sister, seconds after Zane had dove out of the blast's path. A bright light blinded Zane, Kai and Zack, forcing them to look away. Moments after it died down, Kai turned back to his sister. Nya laid on the ground, moaning in pain.

"Did it work?" Zack asked.

"Only one way to find out," Kai muttered.

Kai approached Nya as she moaned. He knelt next to her, watching her eyes flutter open.

"Nya?" Kai whispered.

"Kai?" she moaned. "What just happened?"

"It's alright," Kai hugged her.

Nya flinched, pushing Kai away. Kai looked at her, worried. Then he noticed the pain in Nya's eyes as she looked at him.

"What's wrong?" Kai asked, worried.

He reached out a hand, hoping to touch her and attempt to calm her.

"No," Nya shook her head. "Don't touch me."

Kai pulled his hand away, concerned for his sister.

"It hurts, everything hurts," Nya whimpered.

"Where the armour is?" Zane asked.

Nya nodded, remaining unmoving on the ground. Zane and Kai looked at each other.

"What do we do?" Zane asked.

"We need to get her somewhere safe," Kai said. "The others can help her with the pain, and to get the armour off of her."

"What about Jay?" Zack cut in.

"He can wait until we get Nya to safety," Kai answered. "For all we know, Jay could be in just as much pain, if not more."

Zack nodded, changing into his dragon form. Kai looked at his sister, biting his lip, then turning to Zane.

"How should we do this?" he asked.

"I would suggest making some sort of basket that Zack could carry her in," Zane suggested, motioning to the forest.

Kai nodded, understanding what he meant.

"Zack, can you stay here with my sister?" Kai asked. "We won't be long."

"Alright," Zack nodded, sitting in his dragon form. "We'll be here."

Kai followed Zane into the forest, into a section coated by vines. Zane looked up the tree they were attached to, and smiled with satisfaction. He tugged on them, then turned to Kai.

"I can weave these and they'll work perfectly," Zane told him. "Can you climb up and cut them down for me?"

"Yeah, on it," Kai nodded.

Kai ran to the base of the tree, springing off the stump and jumping into the air. He grabbed onto a branch and pulled himself up. He jumped and swung onto another branch above him.

"That should be plenty," Zane called up to him.

Kai nodded, pulling a dagger from his pocket and using it to cut the vines. After he had cut enough, he slid the dagger away. He looked down, seeing Zane weaving the vines together, and creating a basket for his sister. Kai was about to jump down when something flew through the air and pinned him to the tree.

"Zane!" Kai shouted out.

Kai looked at his shoulder, and found an arrow pinning his gi to the tree. He pulled on it but was unable to get himself free. He glanced down to see Zane had dropped everything and was racing up the tree to him. But when Zane started glancing to his left, away from Kai, he realized he was in more danger than he thought. Jay was racing towards him, getting closer and closer by the second.

"Blast him!" Zane shouted.

Kai only had a second to react, forming a small golden sphere in his hands.

"Your done, ninja!" Jay yelled.

Kai looked up as Jay pounced on him, knocking bother of them into Zane below them, and into the ground. All while the golden sphere Kai created exploded and destroyed almost everything in its path.

* * *

 **Zack landed with June, Ali, Stan and Tylor on his back. Nya had convinced him to take her to their shelter and then take some of the others to help Kai and Zane. Ali looked around, worried. The forest that once stood around them was now a crater in the ground, everything smoldering and coated by ashes.**

"Did Kai do this?" June asked, turning to Zack.

"I don't know," Zack answered. "He and Zane went in there to find something to carry Nya back in, then there was an explosion and they never came back."

June and Ali exchanged worried looks.

"If it was Kai, he would have been trying to defend himself from something," Ali claimed. "We need to find them incase it was the Overlord."

June, Stan and Tylor nodded, watching Zack transform.

"Spread out and search for anything," Ali ordered. "Leave no stone unturned."

The group spread out through the explosion area. Zack circled around in his dragon form, looking for anything that might help them. Ali looked around near the edge of the site, worried about Kai and Zane.

"Over here!" Tylor shouted.

Ali, June and Stan ran over to Tylor while Zack landed next to them. Tylor was kneeling next to Zane, who was moving around slightly. Tylor was helping him sit up right, but his right arm and his legs were badly damaged.

"What happened, Zane?" Ali asked, sliding to the ground next to him. "Do you remember?"  
"He attacked us," Zane muttered. "I couldn't go after them, my system is severely damaged."

"Who attacked you?" Stan asked.

"Jay," he answered. "I tried to stop him before he reached Kai, but I wasn't fast enough."

Zane flinched as Tylor and Stan tried to get him up. Once they had him on his feet, he fell forwards.

"I can't move," Zane moaned.

Ali and June quickly turned Zane over onto his back.

"What happened to Kai?" Ali asked.

"Jay took him," Zane groaned. "Kai shoot a blast of energy out, damaging me, knocking himself out, and allowing Jay a moment to get him away from here."

The others all exchanged worried looks, realizing their time was growing slim.

"How long ago was that?" June asked. "How much time do we have to stop them?"

"Jay was out for a couple minutes, but they left over an hour ago," Zane answered.

"Do we have time to get back to the others?" Tylor asked.

"We don't have enough time to get to Kai," Ali answered. "We have to be able to do something."  
"Like what?" Stan asked.

"Zack, you need to get Zane back to the others," Ali ordered. "He needs repairs and we need everyone available to meet us in the city."

"On it," Zack nodded.

Everyone stepped away from Zane as Zack picked him up in his claws and took off into the sky.

"If Zack's going back to the others, how are we getting to the city?" Tylor asked.

"June," Ali smiled.

"Got it," June smirked.

Tylor and Stan looked at each other, then back to June to see a big purple dragon before them.

"How did you!?" Stan shouted.

"There isn't time," Ali snapped, jumping on the dragon. "Both Kai and all of Ninjago are at risk right now, we need to move!"

Tylor and Stan nodded, jumping on the dragon. June took off, flying as fast as they could towards the city.

"Hold on, Kai," Ali muttered to herself. "We're on our way."


	22. Chapter 22 - Face to Face

Tylor, Stan and Ali gripped each other tightly as June swerved her dragon out of the way of yet another rocket.

"There is nowhere to land!" June shouted.

"Get us close and we'll have to jump!" Ali told her.

"Wait, we're just going to jump into the army of nindroids that are armed and dangerous without any weapons?" Tylor shouted. "Are you insane?"  
"We need to get to Kai!" Ali told him. "What other choice do we have."

"How about one that won't cost us our lives!" Stan shouted.

"I'm with them on this on," June told Ali over her shoulder. "Do you have a death wish or something?"

Ali moaned in irritation. She looked around, wondering if there was any other option that wouldn't cost them time. Rooftops were a no, so are the streets around the tower. Unless they jumped and tried to land somewhere on the building, they had no chance of being near the tower.

"I can't keep us here much longer," June warned Ali. "Make up your mind or we're going to fall and go splat on the ground."

"Fine, we'll go find somewhere else to land," Ali snapped.

June quickly sent the dragon upwards and above the clouds. Ali sighed, watching the tower slowly get smaller and smaller as they flew away. She was beginning to lose hope that Kai would even be there to save when they got there.

* * *

Kai slowly opened his eyes, his head pounding with a massive headache. He slowly looked up, they jumped and screamed. Only the sound of the scream came out muffled from the cloth over his mouth. Kai looked at himself, seeing he was chained up and trapped.

"It's only you and me," the Overlord smirked at him from Lloyd's body.

Kai shook his head, hoping he was only having a nightmare and would wake up from it any seconds now. Only he wasn't, and he knew it.

"Don't worry, little ninja," the Overlord whispered. "This will all be over soon."

The Overlord turned away from him, laughing. Kai's eyes turned to see Jay, watching the Overlord carefully. Only Kai saw that Jay was tied up to.

"Oh, little blue Jay over here was freed from your blast," the Overlord turned back to find Kai looking at Jay. "He was trying to get you out of there before I came and took both of you."

"Zane, Cole and Nya will save us and stop you," Jay spat.

"Their both worthless," the Overlord hissed. "They were nothing until I made them into something. Now that they don't have my help, they stand no chance against me."

"You didn't hurt Cole," Jay glared. "You hardly touched him before he broke free."

"You don't know, do you?" the Overlord grinned.

"Know what?" Jay asked, looking over at Kai.

Kai glanced down, realizing that the Overlord was going to tell him. Jay was going to be heartbroken, and Kai would be on his own.

"He's dead, Jay," the Overlord smirked. "You killed him."

"Liar!" Jay snapped.

"It was you, Jay," the Overlord smirked. "You know what you did, you just want to deny it."

"I didn't do anything," Jay cried out. "I didn't hurt him."

"Oh, but you did," the Overlord grinned. "Even Kai knows it was you."

Jay looked at Kai, seeing the red ninja avoiding eye contact.

"Kai, is he?" Jay gulped.

Kai blinked his eyes, holding back tears as a couple escaped and slipped down his cheeks.

"No," Jay muttered.

Jay bit his lip, looking at Kai. The Overlord lifted Jay's chin, looking him in the eyes.

"Not only that, but you lead me straight to him," the Overlord grinned, pointing at Kai. "Ninjago's downfall his all your fault."

Jay glanced at Kai before dropping his head to the floor. Kai shook his head, trying to tell Jay that none of this was his fault. Kai knew the Overlord was only trying to weaken Jay to attack him and turn him again. Kai let out muffled cries, hoping to get Jay to look up at him. Kai watched the Overlord pull a wire out of a computer, and inserting it into a chip he had imbedded into Jay's head above his ear. Jay flinched, looking up.

"Five minutes, and you'll be gone," the Overlord smirked before turning to Kai. "I'll give you time to say your goodbyes before he'll join that Master of Earth."

The Overlord pulled the cloth off Kai's mouth.

"You won't get away with this," Kai growled.

The overlord laughed, walking out of the room. Kai glanced over at Jay, seeing him twitching and swaying.  
"What is he doing to you?" Kai asked, leaning towards Jay.

"Erasing me," Jay muttered. "Before he turned me, he put a chip in my head. It gives hi-im access to anything. It's how he controlled me, how he controlled Nya. What he was planning on doing with Cole and Lloyd. How he was going to kill us off, one by one, without anyone knowing."

Kai pulled on the chains, hoping to reach Jay and pulled the wire out of him.

"We need to get that off of you," Kai said.

"How?" Jay whimpered.

Kai calmed himself, knowing how. He closed his eyes, focusing on his magic. He pictured a key, and then felt the chains fall off him.

"How did you do that?" Jay gasped.

"I'll explain later," Kai told him.

Kai ran up to Jay, pulling the wire from him. Jay flinched, then moaned.

"Are you going to be Ok?" Kai asked, pulling the chains off his brother.

"Yeah," Jay sighed. "I'll be fine."

"We need to get out of here," Kai said, looking around.

"How?" Jay asked, slowly standing up. "All the exits will be heavily guarded, especially with you here."

Kai looked up, and smiled.

"How are you with climbing?" Kai asked Jay.

Jay gave Kai a confused look, then saw what he was looking at.

"I like what you're thinking," Jay smiled. "Let's do it."

Jay ran to Kai, jumping and kicking off the wall and grabbing hold of the vent. He pulled it open before crawling in. He turned and pulled Kai up before they started crawling through the vents.

"This way," Jay whispered.

Jay turned left, checking behind him to make sure Kai was alright.

"What exactly happened to Cole?" Jay asked quietly.

"Oh," Kai breathed.

"Did I actually," Jay started to ask.

"No, it wasn't your fault, Jay," Kai said. "No one will ever blame you for what he did."

"Are you sure?" Jay asked, looking at Kai.

"Positive," Kai smiled at him.

Jay turned back, then they heard a faint alarm around them.

"They know we're missing," Jay whispered. "We need to get out of here."

Jay picked up his pace, and Kai followed him. Kai glanced behind them, making sure they weren't being followed. They he ran into Jay.

"This is the way out," Jay whispered. "But there are nindroids everywhere."

"Maybe there's another way," Kai said.

"Nope," Jay sighed. "This is the only option, unless you want to fight our way out of here."

"What do we do then?" Kai asked.

Jay turned, taking a deep breath.

"Get ready to run," he said. "Run like your life depends on it because it will."


	23. Chapter 23 - Back to Back (Fixed)

Kai only had a seconds to react to what Jay had told him. Before he knew it, Jay had kicked the vent off, jumped out and started running. Kai wasn't far behind him, but neither were the droids. Kai glanced behind him as Jay grabbed his arm and pulled him into an alleyway. They didn't stop, only kept running.

"We can't lose them!" Kai shouted at Jay.

Jay looked behind them, to see the droids gaining on them. He could let him or Kai be caught. That's when Kai pulled himself from Jay's grasp. Jay spun around, terrified that they had grabbed Kai. He watched Kai form a ball of energy in his hands, then fire at the droids. Kai knew it wouldn't give them long, but it gave them a chance. Kai spun around, grabbing Jay by the wrist.

"Move!" Kai snapped.

Jay nodded, turning as the two sprinted away again. After a couple minutes of running, they broke into a building with a single blast. They sealed the entrance to the building, then collapsed with exhaustion.

"That was close," Kai said between breaths.

"I didn't know you could do that," Jay sighed, throwing his head back and falling to the ground.

"I'm still learning," Kai shrugged.

"Learning," Jay gasped, trying to to laugh. "Are you kidding me? What you did was incredible!"

"Thanks," Kai sighed. "But I can't do much more."

They sat in silence, their breathing slowing and becoming more regular that before. Jay sat up, looking Kai.

"What happened to the others?" Jay asked. "Like Zane? And Nya?"

"They're both safe," Kai answered. "Ali is with them, along with another group of friends that you don't know."

"Oh, like who?" Jay asked.

"June, Tylor, Stan," Kai listed. "You know Nicki and Roy, and of course Zack is there too."

"Do they know where you are?" Jay asked. "Can they help us?"

"They might think I'm dead," Kai sighed. "The explosion near the forest should have killed us."

"But it didn't," Jay told him.

Kai did respond to Jay, who only sighed.

"You know, their help would be great right about now," Jay sighed.

Kai nodded. He sighed, looking up at the ceiling. (Song: Feel Invincible by Skillet)

" _Target on my back, lone survivor lasts. They got me in their sights_ ," Kai sang.

" _No surrender, no trigger fingers go. Living the dangerous life_ ," Jay grinned, singing along.

" _Hey, hey, hey, everyday when I wake, I'm trying to get up, they're knocking me down_ ," Kai sang.  
" _Chewing me up, spitting me out_ ," Jay grinned.  
" _Hey, hey, hey, when I need to be saved. You're making me strong, you're making me stand_ ," Kai sang.  
" _Never will fall, never will end_ ," Jay sang.  
" _Shot like a rocket up into the sky. Nothing could stop me tonight_ ," they sang together.

They grinned, kneeling in front of each other.

" _You make me feel invincible. Earthquake, powerful. Just like a tidal wave, you make me brave_ ," Kai sang, grinning before Jay joined him. " _You're my titanium. Fight song, raising up. Like a roar of victory in a stadium_."  
" _Who can touch me 'cause I'm_ ," Kai sang, looking at Jay.

" _I'm made of fire_ ," Jay answered, pointing at Kai.  
" _Who can stop me tonight_ ," Kai sang.

" _I'm hard wired_ ," Jay grinned.  
" _You make me feel invincible_ ," they sang together, jumping to their feet. " _I feel, I feel it. Invincible. I feel, I feel it. Invincible_."  
They stood, grinning at each other.

" _Here we go again. I will not give in. I've got a reason to fight_ ," Kai sang.  
" _Everyday we choose, we might win or lose_ ," Jay sang. " _This is the dangerous life_."  
" _Hey, hey, hey, everyday when I wake. They say that I'm gone; they say that they've won_ ," Kai sang, looking out the window.

" _The bell has been rung, it's over and done_ ," Jay answer, watching him.  
" _Hey, hey, hey when I need to be saved, they counting me out, but this is my round_ ," Kai turning, grinning at Jay.

" _You in my corner look at me now_ ," Jay grinned.  
" _Shot like a rocket up into the sky. Nothing could stop me tonight_ ," Kai sang, golden specks sparkling in his eyes.

" _You make me feel invincible. Earthquake, powerful. Just like a tidal wave, you make me brave_ ," they sang together. " _You're my titanium. Fight song, raising up. Like a roar of victory in a stadium_."  
" _Who can touch me 'cause I'm_ ," Kai sang, turning and looking out the window.

" _I'm made of fire_ ," Jay answered, following Kai's gaze.  
" _Who can stop me tonight_ ," Kai sang.

" _I'm hard wired_ ," Jay sang, his heart sinking.  
" _You make me feel invincible_ ," they sang together, looking outside. " _I feel, I feel it. Invincible. I feel, I feel it. Invincible._ "

An army of droids had surrounded them. They knew where they were, and had now blocked all entrances, and trapped them inside. Kai and Jay looked at each other, and nodded without saying a word. Kai charged a blast, straight out at the army before they spun into spinjitzu and attacked. The droids tried to defend themselves, but were sent flying in all different directions. Kai jumped off a droid, kicked off the wall of a building and launched himself into the sky.

" _Shot like a rocket up into the sky. Not gonna stop, invincible_ ," Kai shouted.

Kai turned into what looked like a missle of golden energy and dropped down on the droids. The explosion shook the ground.  
" _You make me feel invincible. Earthquake, powerful. Just like a tidal wave, You make me brave!_ " Jay sang.  
He watched Kai rise from the pit in the ground

" _You're my titanium. Fight song, raising up. Like a roar of victory in a stadium,_ " Kai sang, grinning at Jay.  
The two ran at each other, jumping and grabbing the other by the hand. That's when they noticed another group fighting the droids. They spun into a combined spinjitzu which was stronger than normal.

" _You make me feel invincible. Earthquake, powerful. Just like a tidal wave, You make me brave_ ," they sang together, spinning. " _You're my titanium. Fight song, raising up. Like a roar of victory in a stadium!_ "  
" _Who can touch me 'cause I'm_ ," Kai sang.

" _I'm made of fire!_ " Jay echoed.

" _Who can stop me tonight?_ " Kai sang.

" _I'm hard wired_ ," Jay echoed.

" _You make me feel invincible!_ " they shouted. " _I feel, I feel it. Invincible. I feel, I feel it. Invincible!_ "

Jay and Kai stopped, grinning and high fiving each other. They turned, looking past the nindroids that were now heaps of metal shells to see Ali, June, Tylor and Stan running to them. Kai expected them to be happy to see him, but the grabbed him and pulled him away from Jay.

"Blast him, Kai!" Ali shouted.

"What?" Kai and Jay shouted.

"What are you waiting for?" June cried.

"Guys, he's fine!" Kai cried, pulling free of their grasp. "Jay's normal again. Well, as normal as he can be."  
Jay laughed nervously, looking at the metal still attached to him.

"Hey," Jay smiled weakly.

"Wait a minute," Ali shook her head. "Zane said he saw Jay dragged you away."

"I did," Jay replied. "I was trying to get him away from there because the Overlord was coming. Unfortunately, he still found us."

"So Zane's OK?" Kai asked.

"Both he and Nya are back at the base, recovering," June nodded. "By the time we got back with Zane, Nya wasn't in pain, and she was able to start repairs on him."

"That's great news," Kai grinning.

"Are either of you hurt?" Ali asked.

"No," Kai shook his head.

"A bit of a headache, but that's it," Jay muttered.

"Wait, the armour isn't hurting you?" Stan asked.

"No, why?" Jay asked.

"Nya was in a lot of pain from hers," Tylor answered.

"She did struggle a lot more than I did," Jay muttered.

"We should get back and get you fixed up, Jay," Ali said.

Jay simply nodded, looking at Kai. That's when everyone noticed Kai had his eyes fixed on something moving towards them. And it didn't look good.

"We need to go!" Ali shouted.

She grabbed Kai by the arm and pulled him along as everyone ran. There was a large ship coming at them. And at the controls was no other than the Overlord.


	24. Chapter 24 - Nothing is as it Seems

The group only made it a block before a cage fell on them. Well, almost all of them. Ali had thrown Kai out of harm's way only seconds before they became trapped.

"Run!" Ali shouted at him.

"What about you guys?" Kai cried.

"We'll be fine!" June shouted at him. "Get out of here!"  
Kai nodded, turning and running. Jay watched Kai disappear, constantly yelling at himself. The others all in the cage with him stumbled as it lifted off the ground, towards the sky. Jay looked up as they were pulled into the ship. The droids took aim at all of them as they opened the cage.

"You failed me."

Jay looked up at the Overlord, seeing the fury and disappointment on his face.

"I'll get him back, Master," Jay bowed.

"What are you talking about, Jay?" Ali turned to him.

All the droids turned to her, causing her to freeze up. Jay turned back to Ali, smiling at her.

"You are all so pathetic," Jay shook his head. "You really think I would help you?"  
Jay laughed, causing the others to all exchange worried looks. Jay stepped out of the cage, and to the Overlord's side as his eyes went from blue to red.

"I was never helping you," Jay mocked. "I was only following orders, which happened to be working for your pathetic needs. If you hadn't thrown Kai like you had, everything would have gone perfectly too."

"Jay," Ali sighed. "I thought we had you back."

"You never had me in the first place," Jay spat.

"That is quite enough, Lightning," the Overlord said. "You and I must discuss other matters in private."

Jay nodded, stepping away from the cage.

"Return us to base," the Overlord ordered the pilot. "Have these four locked away and heavily guarded at all times."

The droids nodded, keeping their guns aimed. Jay turned and followed the Overlord out of the room, into a different one.

"Did you manage to plant the device?" he asked.

"Yes, I did," Jay nodded.

"Did you activate it?"

"No, Master," Jay sighed. "I didn't have the time to."

Jay jumped, the Overlord smacking him across the face.  
"That is no excuse!" he snapped at Jay. "I gave you direct orders, and you failed multiple ones."

"I will fix my mistakes, Master," Jay told him.

"You better, or the consequences will be far worse than ever before," the Overlord hissed. "Now, get going."

Jay nodded. He stepped towards a door and pulled it open. He looked down at the streets flying past below him.

"Don't fail me again," the Overlord warned.

Jay nodded. Then he jumped. Jay closed his eyes, feeling the adrenaline rush as he plummeted towards the ground. He opened his eyes as he flipped in the air and landed in a dark black jet.

"Where to, Lightning?" the pilot asked.

"Hiroshi's Labyrinth," Jay answered.

He walked up to a rack of weapons, picking up a sword and a couple daggered.

"And watch for a man in a golden outfit," Jay added. "We need him alive."

"Ten-four," the pilot answered.

Jay turned, looking out the window on the jet plane. A glare was plastered on his face as he watched the city turn into hills of sand.

"You won't get away this time," Jay muttered. "Or any other time."

* * *

"He's come back!" Nicki cried out.

Everyone ran to the edge of the treehouse, seeing Kai pulling himself up the ladder. Linda saw him, and instantly knew something was wrong. She turned and ran to look over the ledge for anyone else.

"What's wrong, Linda?" Roy asked.

"The others aren't with him," Linda turned to them. "He's all alone."

Nya and Zane pulled Kai up onto the floor of the treehouse, allowing him a moment to catch his breath before slowly pushing himself to his feet.

"What happened?" Nya asked him.

"Where is everyone else?" Zane asked him.

"We were attacked," Kai explained. "Jay broke me out, but we were followed. Ali, June, Tylor and Stan found us and helped us, but the Overlord was right on our tail. He has them again."

Zane and Nya exchanged worried looks before looking back at the others. They all were worried.

"How did you escape?" Linda asked.

"Ali threw me," Kai sighed. "She told me to run and that they'd be fine."

Nya helped her brother to his feet, then hugged him.

"I'm so happy your safe," she whispered to him.

"We won't be safe for long," Linda sighed.

"What do you mean?" Zane asked.

Linda walked up to Kai, shaking her head. Kai looked to her, then felt a pinch in his arm. He flinch, then looked up to see Linda had a small device in her hands.

"What is it?" Nya asked.

"A tracker," Linda sighed. "Luckily, it's not activated yet. Otherwise, you could have lead the Overlord and all of his men straight to us."  
They all tensed up as a rumbling echoed around them.

"I don't think they would have needed it anyways," Roy muttered.

"Was that a-" Nya cringed.  
"Jet plane," Nicki finished Nya's thought. "And a big one."  
"What do we do?" Zack asked.

A thump caused all of them to look upwards, to the lookout point on the tree house. They all stumbled backwards, terrified and shocked. The intruder pulled a sword out before jumping down to their level. He landed on one knees, laughing at them. He slowly stood before them, playing with the sword in his hands. He brought one to his head, keeping his gaze down.

"I've got all of them," he said. "Sending my location and requesting backup."

He dropped his sword to his side, tilting his head to the side as he looked up at the terrified group before them. They watched as four more droids dropped down behind him, each holding guns that aimed at them.

"Missed me?" he taunted.


	25. Chapter 25 - Not Who He Seems To Be

_**You know what I like, PLOT TWISTS! Dun, Dun, Duhhhh!**_

"Kai, get out of here!" Linda shouted.

Kai watched from his sister's side as everyone charged into a battle they knew they couldn't win. Kai backed away, then raced to the ladder down. He was about two feet from it when someone tackled him from behind and sent him toppling over. They both fell down the hole and Kai found himself tangled in the rope ladder. Kai glanced down and saw Jay grab a hold on the ladder, grinning at him.

"I'm coming for you, Kai," Jay grinned.

Kai panicked, unable to free himself from the ladder without falling to the ground, which wouldn't end well for him.

"Leave him alone!"

Kai watched a blur of white and red fly past him. He heard Jay yelped, and then a loud thump below him. He looked down, seeing a dragon standing over Jay, growling at him. He looked up, coming face to face with Nicki.

"What the heck is that?" he cried out.

"That's Zack," Nicki told him.

Nicki wrapped her leg around the ladder to stabilize and secure herself before freeing Kai from the rope. She grabbed his hand and helped him back onto the ladder before the two climbed to the ground below them. As Kai's feet touched the ground, he heard Zack whimper behind him.

"No! Zack!" Nicki cried.

She jumped off the ladder and raced towards Zack. Kai spun around, seeing Jay on his feet, looking down at Zack as he transformed back into his human form. Zack collapsed as Nicki caught him in her arms.

"Zack, speak to me," Nicki pleaded. "Come on, say something."

Kai's eyes widened, seeing the red pooling on Zack's shirt. He looked back up at Jay as the blue ninja wiped a dagger clean.

"You killed him," Kai gasped.

"Little kid should have stayed out of my way," Jay shrugged. "If he knew better, he would still be alive."

"You monster!" Nicki shouted at him.

Nicki dropped Zack and ran at Jay. She froze as Jay pulled the dagger up, holding it at her chest.

"I wouldn't get any closer unless you plan on joining him," Jay growled.

Nicki slowly backed away from Jay, her hands in the air. Jay smiled, pulling a second dagger out and turning to Kai.

"Are you going to surrender, or do I have to hurt more people?" Jay taunted.

"I would never surrender to you," Kai frowned.

"Kai!"

Kai spun around, looking up. He could see the jet above the leaves and branches, with Nya stuck on it.

"Nya!" Kai cried, looking up at his sister.

"Tisk, tisk," Jay shook his head. "Would you look at that?"

"What are you talking about?" Kai spun around to Jay.

"You realize with one move, I could order for her, your sweet little sister, to be thrown over," Jay smirked. "She wouldn't survive the fall. Or at least, she would succumb to any injuries she got from the fall."

"You wouldn't dare," Kai glared.

Jay smirked at Kai, and waved his hand in the air. Kai heard Nya scream from terror, and didn't even look up to her.

"Last chance, or she falls," Jay taunted.

Kai could hear the others all screaming her name, terrified for her. All echoing around her screams of terror from above him.

"Kai," Nicki whispered.

Kai looked up, seeing Nicki looking at him.  
"What do we do?" she whispered to him.

Kai glanced up, seeing the others all trapped and chained on the ship, with Nya hanging over the edge of it. He looked back down to Nicki, then to Jay.

"Just leave her alone," Kai said.

"So you surrender?" Jay grinned.

"Just don't hurt her," Kai spat at Jay.

"Fine," Jay smiled.

Jay turned, waving at the jet. Kai looked up as Nya was pulled back into the jet, and sighed with relief. Then he felt hands on his arms, pulling them behind him. He glanced over his shoulder, seeing Jay cuffing him.

"See you in a bit, Kai," Jay taunted.

Kai felt a pinch in his wrist, then a dizzy feeling in his head before he passed out.

* * *

Nya gasped and ran to her brothers side as his unconscious body was thrown into a cell with them.

"I thought Master wanted him unharmed," a droid told Jay.

"Unharmed, a couple cuts and bruises, what's the different?" Jay shrugged. "He put up a fight and got himself hurt anyways."

"Nya looked up for a split second, glaring at Jay before turning to Zane and Linda.

"What do we do?" she whispered.

"I don't know," Zane sighed.

"What you do is stay put until Master says otherwise," Jay turned.

Nya looked at the others, worried. Linda knelt next to her and pulled the water ninja in for a hug. Nya buried her face into Linda's chest, trying to stop herself from screaming and attacking someone. She heard Jay laughing at them, then his laughter faded and a door closed.

"Did we lose?" Nicki whimpered.

Nya sniffled, looking down at her brother. Everything he's just gone through was unbelievable, and he would still keep fighting. She knew it.

"We can't give up," she whimpered. "We have to do something."

"Like what?" Roy asked. "Kai's out cold, and who knows when he'll wake up. They also just killed Zack."

"We-" Nya started.

"We've lost, Nya," Linda whispered. "There's nothing we can do right now."

Nya pushed Linda away from her and crawled to her brother. She lied next to him, staring at him and praying he would wake and side with her. Linda sighed, shaking her head.

"They have the same fighting spirit," Zane sighed. "You can't get through to either of them anymore. We'll just have to wait for them to see it themselves and hope they don't get killed."

Linda nodded, sighing softly to herself. She looked up to see Jay was back, watching them from the doorway. They made eye contact, and the look in Jay's eyes sent shivers down Linda's spine. Jay smirked and turned away from them, walking out again.

"What's wrong?" Zane whispered.

"His eyes," Linda whispered.

"Jay's?" Zane questioned.

"That's not Jay," Linda corrected him. "That's someone else that the Overlord is using to make us think it's Jay."

"What?" Zane gasped.

Now everyone was looking at them.  
"His eyes," Linda said. "With what the Overlord's done to him, his eyes would still be their normal sapphire blue. They aren't red, they're hazel."

"Jay never had hazel eyes," Nya frowned.  
"That's why I'm saying it's not Jay," Linda replied. "The Overlord's created a replica of Jay, but the flaw was the eyes. And it's showing through."

"Then where is our Jay?" Zane questioned.

The ship lurched, stopping.

"We might only have a couple minutes to try to find out," Linda muttered.

They were there.


	26. Chapter 26 - Last Chances

Kai woke up, looking around as everything flooded back to him. Panic ensued as he found himself chained in a cell. He looked around, hoping someone was locked up with him like before, but he was alone. All by himself.

"It's about time you woke up," a voice spat.

Kai looked up, seeing the Overlord glaring at him.

"No, this can't be happening," Kai muttered. "This can't be real."

"Oh, this is very real, Kai," the Overlord smiled, walking up to him. "It's almost time. Jay will be down to collect you in a couple minutes."

"Why are you doing this?" Kai cried.  
"Doing what?" the Overlord grinned. "Using him? Using you?"

Kai was silent as the Overlord walked out. He saw Jay standing outside the cell, smirking at Kai. Kai looked away from him, keeping his gaze low. Why did it have to be him? Why was he the target? Why couldn't he protect anyone when they needed it?

Kai looked up momentarily when the door opened. Jay walked to him and unchained him, grabbing him by the arm. Jay yanked Kai to his feet in the cell and dragged him out the door. Kai pulled on Jay, trying to break free. Then a thought came into his mind.

' _That's not Jay, Kai.'_

' _What?'_ Kai questioned.

' _Kai, it's Ali. That's not Jay, that's just a replica of him. Kill him!'_

' _What if it is him?'_

' _Then you take the chances, and get yourself killed by the Overlord.'_

Kai gulped, taking a deep breath. He was going to do it. Just before they arrived, Kai pulled himself free from Jay with one swift movement. Jay spun around furious.

"Get back here!" Jay snapped.

Kai stepped out of Jay's reach, then created a Golden energy ball in his hands.

"I hope your right, Ali," he muttered.

He shot it at Jay, sending him flying and colliding with the wall. Kai watched in awe as Jay's figure flickered, and then changed into a normal droid. He gasped, backing away as it flickered between the two.

"You really aren't Jay," Kai growled.

The figure's form rested on Jay as he slowly stood up.

"I was wondering when you would clue into that," the droid grinned.

"Where is Jay? The real one?" Kai cried out.

"You think it's only Jay?" the droid laughed. "Oh, you are so very wrong."  
Kai yelped, turning and seeing Nya and Zane had appeared behind them.

"What?" Kai gasped. "What's going on?"  
"We're all fake," Jay taunted. "Replicas made by the Overlord to replace your weak, foolish friends. They were nothing, useless scraps that were used to create us."

"What about Cole?" Kai asked. "Is he?"  
"Oh, he is fine," the droid grinned. "The one you thought died was only the replica. We had to, discontinue him because of a malfunction."

Kai watched the droid push open the door, and saw the whole team in chambers. All of the ninja were weak and seemed asleep. Zane was propped up against the side of his chamber, clearly powered off. Nya was curled in a ball, her knees pulled against her chest and her arms under her head. Cole looked like he was thrown in unconscious, his arm and legs sprawled out in the chamber. But Kai's eyes remained on Jay, the blue ninja in the chamber. Other than his sister and Lloyd, he was the youngest, and looked the worst out of all of them. The droids holding him let him go and he walked towards Jay's chamber. That's when he was able to get a better look at the young ninja.

Jay had cuts and bruises all over him, all from the torture and punishments before the Golden Power's came into the picture. His hair was filthy and scattered in all different directions. He had a black eye and what looked like a dislocated shoulder on his right. Kai bit his lip, placing his hands on Jay's chamber. That's when he saw Jay's eyes open for a split second.

"What did you do to them?" Kai asked, turning to the droids.

He saw the droids had given up on trying to hide who they were and had changed to their normal attire.

"Zane is powered down," the droid answered. "The other's chambers are filled with a sleeping gas, that is keeping them unconscious."

The other two droids, that had never said a word to him ran up and grabbed him by the arms and were starting to drag him out of the room. Kai glanced over his shoulder, and he saw what he was hoping for. Jay was looking back at him, a faint smile on his face. He looked almost peaceful, only for his smile to fade and for him to look away. Then the door closed behind Kai.

He walked in silence for a little while, keeping his head low as he thought about everything. How long was he tricked by the Overlord's games? How long was he just with the droids, the decoys? How long have the others been trapped in those cells, lost and alone? How long were they waiting for him to come and save them?

* * *

He knew time was running out, and the Overlord was making his final preparations for the Golden Powers. He was silenced, too afraid to say anything with the fear that he was now expendable. They could kill him very easily.

"That should do it," the Overlord said.

He felt the evil presence that had been controlling him for far too long leave him, and he collapsed to the ground as exhaustion took over him.

"Make sure he's chained up and doesn't get away," the Overlord ordered.

He felt metal hands grab his arms and drag him on the ground away from where he was. He glanced up, seeing a purple aura in a small chamber. The Overlord. He looked to his sides as he was chained to the spot, unable to even get to his knees.

His eyes jumped up as the door opened. A droid walked in, followed by two others that had the target between them. He gasped as they made eyes contact.

"Kai," he muttered.

He watched Kai pull free from the droids and run to him, pure joy overwhelming both of them. He quickly returned Kai's hug, wanting that moment to last forever.

"I thought I had lost you forever," Kai whispered.

He felt tears welling up in his eyes, knowing that he was about to lose him.

"You need to stop him," he whispered to Kai. "Otherwise we're going to lose each other."

Kai backed away, looking at him.

"Kai, please," he pleaded. "Fight against him."

Kai frowned, only for a droid to yank him away. Kai struggled, trying to break free from the droid's grasp. Kai stumbled as he was pushed into a chamber. He spun around as the door closed. He pushed against it, hoping to get it open. He turned as one of the droids pulled a lever on a panel. That's when what Lloyd told him made sense to him.

"No, no, please," Kai pleaded.

He pushed himself against the chamber walls, a purple aura flowing into the chamber with him. It swirled around as Kai panicked, terrified. He could hear the laughter from the Overlord, but the power wasn't being drained from him yet. He couldn't feel it. He watched the aura from the Overlord form a figure in front of him, a person.

Then everything happened so quickly, Kai had no time to react. A burst of aura from the Overlord sent a string of aura from the Overlord straight into Kai's chest. Kai gasped, stumbling and falling against the wall. The string spread, trapping Kai against the side of the chamber. In a matter of seconds, Kai found himself covered by the single string of aura that coated him like vines.

"Kai! Fight him!" Lloyd shouted from where he was chained.

"I can't," Kai muttered.

Everything started screaming in pain, and he felt the powers being pulled from him.

"Kai! You can do it!" Lloyd screamed. "You need to fight him!"

Kai groaned, unable to move. He dropped his head, feeling like he was about to pass out. He glanced up at Lloyd, seeing the green ninja pleading him to do something. A surge flew through him as the Overlord suddenly screamed with pain. Kai took a deep breath, then jumped at the Overlord. The Overlord grabbed Kai's fists, pushing him back, but they couldn't move.

"You're a fool to try and beat me!" the Overlord cried.

Kai panted, feeling the energy still slowly being drained from him. Kai glanced down at the string of aura, then up at the Overlord.

"I might not be able to beat you," Kai muttered. "But I can still stop you."

Kai kicked to Overlord, sending him backwards. Kai used his moment to create a energy ball.

"No! You'll kill both of us!" the Overlord shouted.

Kai didn't listen, and launched the ball at the Overlord. The explosion shook the who area, broke the chamber, and sent everyone flying through the room.


	27. Chapter 27 - Victory at Last

Jay pulled open Zane chest compartment and flipped the power switch. He watched as his eyes flickered to life.

"What happened?" Zane asked.

Jay turned and pointed to Nya and Cole, who were now standing, slightly shaken behind him. Around them, shatter fragments of glass littered the floor.

"Where's Kai?" Nya asked.

"We need to go find him," Cole added.

"Right," Zane nodded.

Jay climbed to his feet, running after the others. Cole lead the way, turning a corner and pulling open a door. As soon as he did, smoke filled the hallway. They all coughed while Zane jumped to the front and shot a bit of ice into the room. The smoke died down and they ran in. They froze once they were inside the door, seeing the scene before them. Lloyd was crumpled in the corner, his hands and arms covering his face. There were mangled metal figures of droids scattered through the room, as well as shards of glass. A smoky machine stood in the middle of the room. Zane walked to the machine to examine it as Nya and Cole ran to help Lloyd. Jay stood in the doorway, silent.

"Are you Ok, Lloyd?" Cole asked.

Lloyd looked up, coughing as he nodded. Nya and Cole helped the blonde teen to his feet, only for him to run passed them, through the rubble and fall to his knees. Everyone saw what he landed by, or rather who.

"No," Nya muttered.

Lloyd brushed all the glass and rubble off of him. He pull the brunette into his arms and carried him towards the others.

"Is he-" Cole whispered.

"Not quite," Lloyd shook his head. "But we have to do something before he is."

Lloyd laid him on the ground as everyone surrounded him.

"What do we do?" Zane asked. "We can't give him powers, he has them all."

"You need to take them back," Lloyd said.

"How?" Cole asked.

"Place your hands on him, and I'll do the rest," Lloyd told them.

They nodded. Zane kneeled near his feet, Jay at his head and Cole near his chest. Lloyd stood in front of Cole with Zane and Jay by his sides. He took a deep breath, using all the energy he had left. The others watched a golden sphere rise from Kai, and Kai gasped for air. That was the only sign of life from him. They all watched the orb of energy divide into four, white, black, blue and red. They returned to their respective owners as Kai shifted. Nya quickly moved to her brother's side.

"Kai?" she whispered.

Kai slowly opened his eyes, looking around. His eyes landed on his sister, and he smiled. They quickly pulled each other in for a hug. The others all smiled.

"Glad to see you're OK, Kai," Lloyd smiled, patting Kai on the back.

"What about the Overlord?" Cole asked.

"I do not sense his presence here," Zane answered. "I believe he is truly gone."

The others all cheered. Kai smiled, and turned to see Jay looking miserable. He frowned.

"Is something wrong, Jay?" Kai asked.

Jay looked at him startled for a moment. He shook his head.

"Is think something is," Cole commented. "You are never this quiet. What's on your mind?"

Jay bit his lip. He jumped when a blue light flashed on him, and he turned to see Zane was scanning him.

"It seems like when he was captured, there was damage done to his vocal chords," Zane stated. "He cannot speak."

Jay flinched, looking away.

"I get why you didn't say anything, but you could have tried to tell us another way," Cole told him.

Jay sighed, looking up. Kai gave him a sympathetic smile, and Jay returned it.

"Is there anything we can do for him?" Nya asked.

"I can possibly create a device that will allow him to communicate with us," Zane said.

"I can help," Nya added.

"Alright, what should we do now?" Lloyd asked.

"The others!" Kai cried.

Everyone watched Kai spring up and race off. They soon figured out who he was talking about and chased off after him.

* * *

 **By the next morning, it was like nothing ever happened. The ninja were back to living happily in the Airjitzu Temple, with Ali and Dash as their new guests, and roommates. Tylor, June, Stan and Linda had gone off in their little group to continue their lives like they had been before. Peace returned to the land, and the ninja were going to enjoy it. At least, the best they could. Especially since Cole was helping Dash plan Zack funeral.**

Zane and Nya were working on something to give Jay his voice back, while Kai and Lloyd did all they could too keep the blue ninja comfortable. Zane requested that the blue ninja remain in the infirmary until he was healed, and to his disappointment, Lloyd agreed with him. He then found himself locked away to the lone room, away from his brothers and sisters. Kai and Lloyd would visit him with food and games, keeping his mind occupied while Zane and Nya worked on fixing his voice.

It was like that for several days for Jay. Kai and Lloyd's visits, Zane and Nya running tests, all with no signs of Cole. Jay went almost a week without any signs of his earth ninja brother. Then, he finally came.

"How's the sparkstarter been lately?" Cole joked, walking into the infirmary.

Jay rolled his eyes, a goofy smile on his face at Cole's comment as he returned his attention to his comic book.

"Guess what Zane told me today," Cole grinned.

Jay looked up as Cole sat at the foot of his bed. He shrugged.

"He told me that he and Nya would be done the voice simulator," Cole smiled.

Jay grinned, looking the happiest Cole had seen him since he walked in. Cole returned the smile, only for their moment to be broken by Zane and Nya walking in.

"Alright, we're finished," Zane smiled.

"So, where is it?" Cole asked, figuring that's what Jay was thinking.

Zane held out his hand, showing a small black device. Jay frowned and looked up at Zane, then to Nya who stood behind him. He looked to Cole, then back to Zane. He wanted so badly to ask how it worked, but couldn't say a word.

"What's wrong, Jay?" Nya frowned.

Jay pointed to the device and made a couple motions with his fingers.

"You want to know how it works?" Cole asked.

Jay nodded.

"Well, we have to put it in your throat," Zane explained. "It's a simple procedure that-"

Zane stopped, seeing that Jay was utterly terrified.

"It won't hurt, Jay," Nya assured him. "I promise."

Jay looked at her and nodded.

"When are you planning on doing this?" Cole asked.

"Now, if that's alright," Zane said.

Jay glanced at Cole, and reached for his hand. Cole quickly took it, squeezing it and smiling at Jay. Jay turned and nodded to Zane.

* * *

 **Kai and Lloyd silently slipped into the infirmary later that day, seeing Jay sleeping on his bed. Kai smiled and followed Lloyd silently to his bed. Jay could hear them coming and peeked open an eyes at them.**

"I can hear you guys, ya know," Jay moaned.

"You can talk again!" Kai cheered.

"I would like to sleep to, but I can see that won't be happening any time soon," Jay grumbled.

Jay sat up on his bed, looking around. Kai sat on the end of his bed while Lloyd sat adjacent to Kai.

"How do you feel?" Kai asked.

"Exhausted," Jay answered.

"Aren't we all," Lloyd joked.

Jay chuckled.

"There's that signature Jay grin," Kai mocked.

Jay shook his head as his grin grew.

"Say, Cole's making dinner tonight," Kai started. "Want to go out and see how the city is recovering?"

"Whoa, am I suddenly allowed to leave this place?" Jay asked.

"Yeah," Lloyd nodded.

Jay jumped off the bed, jumping and celebrating with his fists in the air. Kai and Lloyd burst out from laughter and Ali walked in. She paused in the doorway, looking up with a confused look, and shook her head.

"You three are something else," she snickered.

"Ali!" Lloyd cheered.

Lloyd jumped off them bed, running to the Princess. The two hugged.

"Looks like Nya and I aren't going to be the only couple in the Temple anymore," Jay joked.  
"You're forgetting Cole and Dash," Kai pointed out.  
"No way, Cole's got a girlfriend?" Jay cried out.  
"Ha! He's speechless! Called it! Nya! Get the dress!"

They all burst out laughing at Dash's comment from the kitchen downstairs. Cole walked upstairs to the infirmary, grumbling.

"What's his deal?" Jay asked.

The others all shrugged before Cole walked passed again, wearing a bright purple princess dress. The others couldn't contain their laughter any longer and collapsed to the floor.

"Why though?" Lloyd choked out.

"It was a dumb bet," Cole muttered.

"Cole, you better get down here so I can get a picture for chirp!" Dash shouted.

Cole quickly ran in another direction with Dash close behind before a door slammed shut.

"Everything is back to normal," Kai sighed. "Man, I missed these days when we could just sit back, relax, and have some fun."

"Let's make them last while we can," Lloyd grinned.  
"Who left the stove on!" Zane cried.  
"Cole did it!" everyone shouted.

"You guys are just horrible!" Cole snapped from another room.

They laughed again. They walked out and headed for the kitchen. The ninja had been through rough times, but survived and were now settling down again with new friends. Victory was theirs.

 _ **I am now proud to announce the end of the 8 Story Series of A Change in the Enemy to be COMPLETE! That's right, it's over, done, finito. I hope everyone enjoyed it, because I know I enjoyed writing it. I'm just having a hard time believing I've been doing this story for over a year!**_

 _ **As for future uploads, I have a couple stories started that I just want to finish. This includes Ninjago and Nexo Knights stories. They just might need a while seeing I still need to decide where to go with them. For all I know, it might be a couple days, or a couple weeks before I upload again. Hopefully it won't be too long.**_

 _ **WARNING! CRAZINESS AHEAD!**_

 _ **Anyways, this story was a big adventure for me, and a lot of fun.**_

 _ **Kai: Wasn't this only supposed to be 6 stories before.**_

 _ **Who let you in!?**_

 _ **Jay: You left the door open**_

 _ **No I didn't-*turns and sees the door knocked down* COLE!**_

 _ **Cole: Wasn't me**_

 _ **Then who?**_

 _ **Lloyd: Oops?**_

 _ **OK, I have had enough of this! I'm out!**_

 ** _Kai: Zane! Stop her from leaving_**

 ** _Zane: On it *Freezes my feet to the ground*_**

 ** _Gah! Why are you doing this to me!_**

 ** _Kai: Because you can't leave!_**

 ** _And why not? Who's to say I can't break out and kick your butts_**

 ** _Lloyd: We have a surprise for you_**

 ** _Oh, a surprise! I love surprises! As long as it's not_**

 ** _Chen: Hello Sweetheart114_**

 ** _DANG IT!_**

 ** _Cole: Quick, lock them in a closet with a camera!_**

 ** _Don't you dare! *Breaks the ice and runs*_**

 ** _Lloyd: After her! *Runs out after me with the other ninja*_**

 ** _Chen: Craziness. That is all this place ever is._**

 ** _*Video cuts to backstage*_**

 ** _This is seriously bad. I mean bad! Dash and Ali are against me too. My own OC is against me!_**

 ** _Ali: I think I hear her over here!_**

 ** _Crap! Hopefully I get out of this alive._**

 ** _Lloyd: Found her!_**

 ** _RUN for your freaking lives! And see you later!_**

 ** _Everyone: BYE!_**


End file.
